Scarily Ever After
by La spina fra i lilla
Summary: Raven got to experience Monster High, now it's the Monster's turn to experience Ever After High. Things may not go quite how everyone was hexpecting them too.
1. Chapter 1

The mirror spat Raven out with a bit more force than she was expecting, almost as though it was washing its metaphorical hands of her. Judging by the looks on the Monster's faces, the trip hadn't been much more fun for them.

Most of the Royals and Rebels had returned to their own homes. Tomorrow they all had to return to Ever After High and most of them hadn't had time to get ready while looking for her.

There were still a few, Maddie was offering Draculaura some tea, the vampire girl was staring wide eyed as the next Mad Hatter pulled a table, two chairs and a complete tea set out of her hat.

Apple was handing a waste bin to a particularly ill looking Clawdeen who sat on the floor next to her equally ill looking brother. Apparently mirror travel didn't agree with werewolves at all.

Monster High's It couple seemed to have handled the trip with grace though, as did Frankie and ... Raven rubbed her eyes just to make sure she wasn't seeing double. Nope.

Well, she had mistaken Jackson for Dexter when she had first met him, but still the current similarity between them was kind of frightening. They also seemed to have been sizing each other up when her entrance drew everyone's attention.

"Is everyone okay?" Raven asked. "No missing limbs?"

"Raven!" Several voices cheered and suddenly Raven found herself with an arm full of Apple, the Royal practically mowing Maddie down as they both went in for a hug. Maddie took it in stride and instead came in from behind to bookend the Raven sandwich.

"I'm so glad you're back, everyone was really worried," Apple said. She squeezed Raven a little tighter the necessary.

"Air." Raven gasped out and Apple let go, taking a step back.

"Sorry, I'm just so happy that you're okay."

"Me too," Maddie said from her position still wrapped around Raven's waist.

"I'm so sorry, if I had known trying to go home would ruin everyone's vacation, I would have just stayed at school."

Apple looked away, a frown on her face. "Nonsense. It wasn't your fault and we wanted to help find you. We made the choice, you didn't force us." Her frown deepened and she appeared contrite, almost ashamed.

Apple cleared her throat and her smile returned to her face. "And besides, I got to see where you live and meet your father." She looked around at the dark decor. "You have a lovely home."

Raven just shook her head, then looked down at where Maddie was still cuddling her middle.

"Maddie, you can let go now."

Maddie's eyes opened and rolled up to look at Raven's face. "Nope, I have to get in a whole week's worth of hugs into this one, you know."

Raven looked up at the Monster's, who were watching the spectacle that was Maddie with slightly baffled expressions. Raven just shrugged at them in response. What were you gonna do?

Before Raven had to say or do anything else, the door opened and The Good King walked in, followed by Cupid and Giles Grimm.

Maddie disentangled herself to allow Raven's dad to take her place. He broke away from the hug after a deep, relieved sigh and looked at the new faces in his office.

"Are you going to introduce your new friends?" He asked her.

"Oh yeah, everyone,"she said, walking to the middle of the group. "This my father," and she began pointing to each person in turn.

"My best friend, Madeline Hatter, Maddie for short." Maddie waved with both hands and one foot.

"This is Apple White, the future Snow White," Apple curtsied and waved.

"And this is Giles Grimm, my school's head librarian and the best assistant headmaster any student could ask for." Giles blushed as he nodded his head in greeting.

Raven smiled widely as she turned to her Ever After friends and made a sweeping gesture to her Monster High friends.

"And these are my friends from Monster High. The stitched one is Frankie Stein. The werewolves are brother and sister, Clawd and Clawdeen Wolf. The vampire is Draculaura and the Mummy and the dude with the snakes are the most popular couple in school, Cleo DeNile and Deuce Gorgon."

Raven turned to where the last two boys to be introduced were still eyeing each other suspiciously. She squinted at them, before perking up. "And the two glaring at each other are Dexter and Jackson." She said, pointing to each with complete confidence.

Apple perked up from the slight nervousness she had been exuding at the mention of real monsters. "Oh, there was another of us over there. Which Jack? Jack BeNimble? Jack Horner?"

"Jack Pumkin-Eater?" Maddie threw in. "I love the name all the Jack's game. This could take awhile." And she began to spout every Jack she could, including the Jack of Knaves, famous in Wonderland for not stealing the Queen's tarts yet.

Jackson slumped forward, the look on his face melting from unsure to annoyed.

Raven laughed as she put a quick stop to it. "No, no. He's a monster too. That's his name. Jackson Jekyll."

"Oh," Apple said, then leaned in to whisper in Raven's ear. "He doesn't look all that monstrous, comparatively."

"Trust me, looks can be deceiving. Just, don't play any loud music around him and nothing will catch on fire." She patted Apple on the shoulder, leaving the princess very worried about having the new guests roaming the halls. If things spontaneously combusted around them, she'd definitely have to warn Cedar to be extra careful.

Squaring her shoulder's Apple stepped forward and gave her most graceful curtsy. "Welcome, students from another world, to the land of Ever After. I hope you enjoy your stay and if there are any special accommodation any of you need, please feel free to ask. I want Raven's new friends to have a spelltacular time."

"Do you always talk like a stewardess?" Cleo asked, breaking an awkward silence that had fallen. Frankie elbow nudged her in the side before stepping forward.

"Thanks. I can't wait to see your world. I'm sure we'll have a voltageous time. I don't think that there's anything we really need beside some place to stay. We brought everything else from home."

Apple brightened up immediately. "Since classes are resuming tomorrow, I'll talk to the headmaster about letting you attend. Ever After High is the best place to learn all about our world. Oh, but are you the heroes of your stories or the villains? I mean, villains seem the most logical from my perspective, but I suppose in your world monsters can be both."

"Apple, I told you, they don't have that sort of thing in the monster world. None of them have prewritten destinies, remember?" Raven said.

"Destinies, no," Giles said stepping forward. "But their tales are still told."

"So," Apple began, now really confused, "they do have destinies?"

"No." Raven said, making the princess even more unsure of what to make of these new people.

"In the world of monsters and men," Giles answered, "there are still stories of the past, though the generations that came after are not beholden to those pasts. And if I'm understanding correctly who our new guests are, then each one has had their fair share of family drama made known to the world. But their stories are a bit different from what you are used to. Our fairy tales tell of triumphed over darkness or serve as warnings against naivete and selfishness."

The group of kids had all gathered, listening to every word Giles spoke with rapt attention. He turned now from Apple and stepped up between Frankie and Jackson. One of his hands patted Frankie on the shoulder as he continued.

"The stories of their world are more complex, more internal. They ponder on the question of what makes a man," he paused and looked toward Jackson, placing his other hand on the boy's shoulder as he continued, "and what makes a monster." Frankie looked away suddenly uncomfortable, while Jackson seemed to sink into himself, staring at the floor.

Giles gave each another pat on the shoulder before walking away from them. "Perhaps it is good then, for everyone's sake, that their world does not force them to repeat the same mistakes as their ancestors, yes."

"Wow, Mister Grimm," Raven said. "How do you know all that?"

"The Vault of Lost Tales is home to many a forgotten lore. Including those of other worlds. The Gothic Horror section is rife with interesting tomes. Some I've become quite familiar with over my years locked in there. The mythology section has some fairy interesting tales as well. Many of these stories, I think have lessons of their own that our society could stand to learn from."

"Then why are they locked away?" Apple asked. Now this was something she had been slightly curious about for awhile, but when she had asked Headmaster Grimm he had seemed to get angry at her, so she had dropped the subjected.

"My brother believes they are dangerous."

"I don't understand anything that is going on right now," Draculaura said, promptly destroying the mysterious atmosphere that had settled over the room. Raven began chuckling and soon it spread to everyone.

"But seriously," Draculaura said, once everyone had calmed down. "What was all that about?"

"How about I explain it while I show you all to your rooms," Raven suggested. "They do have rooms ready, right Dad?"

"Of course."

"Well, in that case, I guess I better get going home." Apple said. She grabbed Dexter and motioned to Maddie and Cupid to follow her lead.

Cupid stalled. "I think I'll stay here and help everyone adjust. After all, I'm originally from Monster High as well, so I've been were they are. And I wouldn't mind catching up with my old friends about what's going on back home."

"Oh, oh. I want to stay too. If Cupid gets to sleep over then so do I. I've never had a sleepover at Raven's before and as her best friend that just is not acceptable," Maddie said glomping onto Raven.

"Are you sure, this place isn't nearly as much fun as your home," Raven said. Queen Castle was drafty, dreary and an entire wing was off limits because of the creatures her mother had unleashed in it. The Monsters wouldn't mind, it was pretty much what they were used too, but Maddie's home was bright and cheerful and full of the same wackiness as the tea shop below it.

"Yep. There is no way I'm passing up this opportunity." Maddie bounced on her toes, a big smile on her face.

"Okay then, now that that is all settled, I for one would like to see my room for the night. I'm sure my hair is in absolute disarray thanks to that awful mirror," Cleo said. She was running her fingers through her hair and trying to pat down any wayward strands.

"You look great, Cleo." Deuce said, rolling his eyes as they all headed out the door and down the hall. "I never thought I'd see the day Cleo would call a mirror awful." he whispered to the other boys.

"I don't know, something has felt off ever since we came through that mirror." Frankie said.

"Yeah, I'm with Cleo," Clawdeen said. "Everything feels muted, washed out." She rubbed at her arms and shivered at the feel of smooth skin instead of fur. She felt kind of tingly now that she was no longer distracted by her new surroundings.

"Maybe it's because you all changed a bit," Jackson said, distractedly. He seemed to be looking around as though searching for something, only to suddenly flinch.

"Jumpy are we? Come on, Dude. This place is hardly different from Monster High. I think I've even seen that same suit of armor in the catacombs," Deuce said, pointing at a black armor with sharp spikes all over it and a wicked looking mace. Jackson ignored the armor and spun around, eyes darting every which way.

Now this got everyone's attention. He tensed up and turned to see the group staring at him curiously.

"Something wrong?" Raven asked.

"Seriously?" He asked incredulously. "Is no one else bothered by this."

Raven shifted self-consciously, more than aware that the castle wasn't friendly. But it had never occurred to her that Jackson of all people would be upset by it. He always seemed to take creepy things in stride.

"I do!" He said. "That's not what bothers me."

Now Raven, and the rest of them, were just confused.

"Don't tell me you it doesn't bother you having someone narrate every little thing you think and do."

 _Wait, what?_

The blood drained from his face a moment before Maddie bowled him over in a huge hug.

"Yay! You can hear the narrator too! I have to tell Kitty that there's another character who is just as mad as we are. Oh, you'll love the narrator, she is super helpful."

 _Oh, no. Not another one. Listen here you, just because you can hear me, don't go thinking I'm going to give away the plot and I'm not going to be tricked into helping you either. The same goes for you Maddie. I am not giving away the story this time._

 **Silly narrator, we both know you can't wait to get to the good part.**

 _Everyone loves getting to the good part, Maddie. But my job is to follow the events as they unfold, not to direct them._

 **Giving us a hint isn't the same as directing events though.**

 _No. No hints._

 **Not even a little one. Come on, do it for the new guy.**

I don't want it.

 _Good, because giving away plot elements could completely change the course of the story, especially if I give them to a character pivotal to the story._

 **So what you are saying, is that Jack Jack is important some how.**

Don't call me that!

 _Curses, I'm not talking to you anymore. We have to get back to the story already in progress._

"I'm scared," Draculaura said, watching both Maddie and Jackson have a conversation with no one. She clung to Clawd's arm tightly.

"Um, yeah, Maddie claims to be able to hear someone she calls the Narrator, who sometimes tells her what's happening to others when she isn't around and describes things as they happen. Apparently Kitty can too, but I always figured it was just Maddie being silly and Kitty being, well, Kitty." Raven said.

"I guess you have to be the right kind of mad to hear it," Cupid said with a shrug of her shoulders. "Actually, if that's the case, it kind of makes sense he can hear it too."

"Just what are you implying?" Jackson said, narrowed eyes locked on Cupid.

"Nothing." She said, backing up a step.

"I'm not mad!"

Blank stares greeted this declaration. Someone, Clawd probably, started whistling nonchalantly.

"Oh, but you have to be mad to hear the narrator," Maddie said happily. "There's no point in denying who you are. Let the madness flow freely and roll with it." She said, getting all fired up now. "Trust me, you'll feel better if you do."

"All the same, I'd rather not."

"You know what," Apple said, interrupting before this turned into an uncomfortable argument. "Why don't we table this for now and come back to it after we've got you all settle in."

"Yeah, I'm still a little woozy from the trip here and really don't feel like dealing with your crazy right now," Clawdeen said. "Raven, lead the way to the rooms, I could use a good night's rest."

"Right, this way," Raven said, getting everyone's attention.

The rooms were what one would expect from a castle owned by an evil queen. The decor was all dark purples, maroons and blacks, with silver chains and skulls used liberally as accent pieces. All in all the Monsters felt right at home.

Raven showed them to two large rooms, one for the ghouls and one for the boys. Draculaura threw herself on the bed, bouncing a little, while Frankie rooted around in her bag for pj's and her travel charger. Clawdeen flopped face first onto her bed with growl and Cleo checked her reflection in the vanity mirror.

She turned this way and that, pinched her cheeks and pulled at her lower eye lid. Then placed both hands on her waist and pushed in slightly.

"Is something wrong?" Frankie said as she finished pulling her pajama shirt on.

"Do I look, thicker, to you?" Cleo asked, a disgusted sneer on her face.

"Well, you do look less gaunt, but I wouldn't say thicker." Draculaura said. She held up her own arm and examined the skin. "But it's like Jackson said, we all changed a little when we got here. Look how pale cream I am. Frankie too."

Frankie looked in the mirror too and noticed for the first time what Draculaura was talking about. Her skin wasn't the usual mint green anymore, but an ashy white and the seams where she was stitched together almost gone. Actually, looking closer, it appeared that her skin was sealed, like a healed wound and her stitches were marks on the skin itself, like tattoos.

She reached a hand to her neck. She still had her bolts, which was a good thing since without them she had no idea how she would recharge.

Cleo studied herself some more in the mirror, then stepped back as it suddenly occurred to her what was off. "This is closer to how I was before, when I was still human. It's been such a long time, I'd forgotten."

Clawdeen groaned slightly, shifting uncomfortably on the bed. "Ug, my limbs feel awkward." She stretched, twisted then quite suddenly turned into an actual, four legged, fur covered wolf. "Ah, that's better." She said, seemingly not noticing the sudden change, just curling up into a ball and falling asleep.

"Okay then, so that happened," Frankie said. "But I think Clawdeen as the right idea. We should all get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be quite the day."

With that they finished their nightly rituals and went to bed, unaware of what lay in store for them.

I can still hear you, you know.

 _But you aren't even a focal character right now, how?_

Boy's room is right next door and you're loud.

 _...Just go to sleep already._

EA

Light cut through the gloom and dust as the Vault of Lost Tales opened. Milton Grimm scowled at the shelves as he picked his way around the towers of unsorted books and piles of clutter.

For the first time in his life he was here to take books out, rather than lock them in. He would be taking several, actually, and he hated it.

These books were dangerous, filled with ideas and new possibilities that would send Ever After and all her citizens into chaos. Some of them, even he wasn't sure were they came from. He had certainly never heard of an author named George Orwell until a book simply called 1984 showed up one day in a box on his desk.

It, like all the other none fairy tale based books, quickly found itself collecting dust in the Vault.

It seemed that at some point in the years he'd been locked in the Vault with the books, that Giles had taken the time and effort to categorize and shelve many of the stories. All the better for Milton, as this made finding the books he was looking for easy.

A couple from mythology, one of lore, two thick novels, and one novelette.

Research on the 'students' that would be attending tomorrow. His prized student had been gracious enough to inform him of Raven's return and subsequently, of the creatures she had brought with her.

At first, Milton had thought that maybe this was a good thing. That surrounding herself with monsters was just the push in the evil direction that Raven needed.

To then be told that they encourage non conformity and choosing your own path was a real poisoned apple to swallow.

Milton was sure he could fix it though, with a bit of research into these kids' destinies. If he could get them to follow their stories, Raven would have no one to hide behind.

Once he made it back to his office, he shifted through the little pile. He would start with the smaller ones first, then make his way to Frankenstein and Dracula. He opened the book on simple lore first, and skimmed through all the ways one becomes a werewolf.

It wasn't that interesting really, just lore, no plot. Same with mummies, though that was significantly more disgusting.(It took him awhile to realize he was reading an instruction manual on how to make a mummy from a dead body, not how to make a Mummy the species. Once he found that section, being mummified alive with all your organs still in place was nothing to him.)

When none of the basics proved to have anything of interest in them, he moved onto the Greek mythology. However, the story of Medusa was a bit confusing, as the book had several iterations of the same story, none of which could agree on why the gods turned the young priestess into a snake woman who would turn you to stone just by looking at you.

He wrote off the gorgon boy as a possible new recruit as Milton highly doubted he could convince him to let his head get chopped off, and didn't want to risk the consequences of trying to get him to follow his story.

Four down and he had nothing to work with. It was getting late into the night and Milton was getting frustrated. None of the books had anything useful to his cause in them.

With a groan, he picked up the next shortest book. He frowned at the title. Well, at least this one kind of sounded like a fairy tale, though from what his star student had told him, he only had half the cast here.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was mercifully short, but very wordy. Purple prose wasn't really Milton Grimm's thing when it came to reading and surprisingly there was little in the way of either titular character present for the main bulk of the story. A mention here and there of Hyde's cruelty and a few brief encounters with Jekyll that gave more questions than answers and Milton had no idea where the whole thing was going.

Then, at nearing one in the morning, Milton got his answers. Not just to what was going on in the book, but to all his Rebel problems too.

He pushed the rest of the books off his desk, completely ignoring the last two, and stared down at the pages with rapt attention.

A magic potion that brings out your darker self. One that eventually consumes you body and mind, so you can't ever go back. This was just what he needed.

But no ingredients were listed, only one was even hinted at and it wasn't enough to even guess what it could be. How was he suppose to make this without a recipe.

The old grandfather clock on his wall struck one and he realized, he was going to have the great grandson of the inventor in his halls within a few hours time. This was a part of the family history, the boy would know how to make it. All Milton had to do was convince or trick him into giving it up and that would end this rebel nonsense.

With a simple sip of a monster's potion, everything at Ever After would go back to normal.

EA

"Just, wait right here," Raven said, holding her hands out as she backed away. "I know someone who might be able to help. I'll be right back."

The monsters all watched as she quickly darted away towards the school. The morning had been interesting to say the least.

Raven ran through the throng of returning classmates, desperately searching for a familiar flash of red.

Finally she spotted Cerise shifting out of the shadow of a tree by the entrance.

"Cerise! I am so glad to see you," Raven yelled as she grabbed the unsuspecting girl by the wrist and dragged her away from the door. "We need your help."

Cerise was instantly on alert. The last time Raven had asked for her help, she had almost been disowned by her whole village, but it had all worked out in The End. Actually, it had made her shortened vacation home much more memorable this last week. There had been a party, before she was called away to help find Raven.

"What's going on?" she asked as she quickly regained her footing and matched Raven's pace.

"Some new friends of mine are having some trouble adjusting to our world. You're the only one I could think of who could help them find their feet. Literally."

"Uh?"

"You'll see. Over there." Raven pointed to a group of kids Cerise had never seen before, plus Maddie and Cupid, who were crowded around some decorative shrubbery off to the side of the school archway.

Her nose picked up the scent of wolves almost immediately and she slid to a halt, growling.

"No, no. It's okay. Those are my friends," Raven said when she realized Cerise had stopped. Cerise raised an eyebrow and approached cautiously.

The group of kids parted to reveal what Cerise already knew was there. Two large, brown wolves with gold eyes stared up at her pleadingly.

"We, uh, don't know how to change back," said the male.

"Yeah, this isn't really a thing that happens in the monster world," said the female.

"Oh," said Cerise. Well, at least no one was trying to throw anyone into a rocky river this time. She bit her lip in thought as she leaned in to whisper to Raven.

"I may need to get Dad."

EA

"Well, that was awkward and embarrassing," Clawdeen said as the group made their way through the halls, heading towards the main office to work out schedules and dorm arrangements with Giles Grimm, who had helpfully agreed to set everything up.

At least they were walking on two legs again. Not that being in an actual wolf form was bad, it had felt so right, but not having opposable thumbs would have made attending class difficult.

"It's a good thing one of the teachers here is a Wolf, or it could have been worse," Draculaura said. "Though, if you don't mind me asking, how exactly is The Big Bad Wolf, well, you know, alive?"

"Yeah, isn't he suppose to be killed?" Cleo asked.

Raven and Cerise shared a look. "Well, it's complicated. Sometimes, a generation of a story of will go off script a bit. And it's not like the character dies is every telling. Sometimes he's just run off before eating anyone." Raven explained.

"So, he was just scared away?" Frankie asked. "Wait, so, if everyone survives their stories, then do you all get to just go off and do whatever you want after?"

Cerise frowned, "No, it depends on your role. If you are suppose to marry someone specific you still have to do that, even if you don't really want to. All the princess' have to marry Prince Charmings and become queens. But after my story is done, I can do what I want with my life."

"Then why don't you want to?" Frankie's question hung in the air. Cerise hunched into herself and began to back away.

"It's okay. They'll understand," Raven said. "They can keep a secret. Right guys?"

The Monsters all nodded.

"I'd rather not," Cerise said, she wrapped her arms around herself and stood stiffly away from everyone.

"That's okay, Raven. She doesn't have to tell us if she doesn't want to. It's not like we're close ghoulfriends. Right?" Frankie smiled reassuringly.

"Right, sorry Cerise. I didn't mean to pressure you," Raven patted her on the shoulder. "You've been more than helpful enough. We really appreciate it."

Cerise smiled shyly and took off, leaving the group behind as she headed towards her dorm.

"The Big Bad Wolf is her dad, isn't he?" Clawd ask as Cerise disappeared from sight.

"How could tell?" Raven asked, not answering definitively.

"We could smell it," Clawdeen said. "I suppose, you'll just say it's her story to tell?"

Raven nodded, glad they understood.

EA

Raven directed the everyone to the office and waited patiently until they were done working out class arrangements.

"Ah, Miss Queen." The voice of the headmaster came from her left and startled her bad enough to make her jump.

"Headmaster, hi," she said, nervously. She looked around the hall, but she was alone with him.

"It's good to see you back. I was worried there for awhile that we may have lost an important student. Your role is vital to the Snow White legend, after all."

Raven frowned. "I'm still not signing the book."

Grimm frowned at her, his genial expressed turning to one of annoyance. "I thought your return might mean that you had finally come to your senses, but I see now that was just wishful thinking."

"I came back for my family and friends. And to show the world that we don't have to be slaves to destiny to find Happily Ever After."

"Yes, the new 'students' you've brought with. I've heard from my brother. Well, we shall see just how Rebellious they really are, won't we."

Raven smiled, "They don't have destinies to rebel against, didn't you hear? Their world doesn't have a Storybook of Legends, they are free to be whoever they want."

Grimm hummed in the back of his throat and raised an eyebrow at her. "Is that so." Then he walked away, headed to his office for the day.

Raven watched him go, a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that he was up to something, but she couldn't even begin to figure out what.

"Is everything all right?"

She turned to see Jackson existing the office, shutting the door behind him.

"Oh, yeah, everything's fine. Did you get all your classes figured out?"

"Yep. Clawd and Deuce are just finishing up. Mr. Grimm wanted to do my schedule first because he thought it would be the more difficult one to manage."

"You know what, it just occurred to me. Does Holt know what's going on?"

Jackson rolled his eyes (twice actually, with a deeply annoyed sigh at the narrator, who would like to add that it's not her fault he's got some screws loose). "Of course. You didn't honestly think I'd run the risk of that guy turning up here with no idea what's happening, did you? We talked it over while packing our stuff. He promised to be on his best behavior when he gets out, but the two of us have very different ideas of what 'best behavior' means."

Raven scrunched her face up at that. It would explain why he had been one of the later ones to arrive when they went through the mirror. That would have been an interesting conversation if it had been able to happen in real time, but having to make a recording or write it all out must have been a real hassle.

"So, what classes are you in?" She asked, changing the subject.

He pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and looked it over. "Mr. Grimm said that since we aren't really from this world it wouldn't get the Headmaster in a uproar if our classes were more diverse, so I'm in Hero Training, Grimnastics, General Villainy, Science and Sorcery, and Crownculus. We gave Holt Muse-ic, just so he has a class to let loose in."

"Why General Villainy?" Raven looked at him confused. It seemed like such a strange class for him to take.

"Why not? Understanding the mindset of a possible enemy can't be a bad thing. And it sounded like the most fun." He smiled winningly, that same smile he gave her when she first bumped into him over a week ago.

A throat cleared just on the other side of her and they both turned to see Dexter standing there. He looked at Raven with a deep blush on his cheeks and waved awkwardly. She smiled at him.

"Hey, Dex. What are you doing here?" Raven pushed a lock of hair behind her ear as Jackson looked past her shoulder, eyes darting back and forth between the two.

"I, I was asked to show the guys to the boy's dorms," he said. Dexter glanced briefly at Jackson, a look of worry on his face.

"They're not all done yet, but if you want to wait here for a moment, I'm sure they will be soon." Raven leaned back against the wall and motioned him over with her head.

"So, what were you guys talking about?" Dexter asked. Raven thought his voice sounded kind of funny, like the words were hard to get out.

"Just my class schedule," Jackson answered. An uncomfortable silence settle over them all.

Raven shifted nervously, wondering why these two seemed not to be getting along. It couldn't really be that they were angry about how similar they looked, could it.

"Oh, Jackson is taking Hero Training, maybe you could help him catch up," she suggested. Maybe if they found something to talk about the tension would abate.

"Yeah, sure, anything for you," Dexter said, then coughed and corrected himself. "I mean, I wouldn't mind helping out a new student."

Jackson motion between them. "Are you two...?"

Before he could finish or they could decide if they were going to agree or deny, the office door opened and Deuce and Clawd came barrelling out the door.

"Oh man, some of those classes are going to be fun. I can't believe there's a whole class just for wooing," Clawd said as they came through the door.

"Yeah, dude, you planning to sweep Draculaura off her feet?" Deuce asked him, ribbing him in the side.

"Yeah, well. Draculaura is a classy ghoul. She deserves it." Deuce rolled his eyes. "We can't all be trophies that are expected to do nothing but look good and keep our mouths shut."

"Just what are you saying? I'll have you know, me and Cleo share a really deep connection. I'm not just her eye candy, but it certainly doesn't hurt how good we look together, you know what I mean." Deuce ran his hands over his snakes, briefly pushing them all down like he was a model running his hand through his hair for the camera. The snakes popped back and shook their heads about, disoriented by the motion.

"And that would be the rest of them," Raven said, pushing away from the wall. She waved to get their attention. "Dexter is going to show you to the dorms. You guys remember him from yesterday, right?"

"Yep, Jackson's clone, how could we forget. Hey, just out of curiosity, you don't happen to occasionally wake up in places that you don't remember how you got there, do you?" Deuce asked.

"Uhh,...what?" Dexter blinked confused while Jackson punched Deuce in the arm.

"Not cool, man."

"What, it's a perfectly legit question."

"You guys," Raven just shook her head and shooed the whole lot of them off. It wasn't long after that the ghouls joined her and she led the way to the dorms, showing them their rooms.

Frankie, Draculaura and, not surprisingly, Cleo had signed up for Princessology, though Cleo was the only one of the three to take Kingdom Management. Draculaura had taken Damsel-in-Distressing , siting that it seemed like an easy A. Frankie had taken Literature, believing that was the best way to learn about a world that revolves around books and stories. She wasn't wrong when Raven thought about.

Clawdeen had taken the longest to finish her schedule and grumbled that none of the classes had looked that interesting, so she had gone with Kingdom Managment and Hero Training believing them to be the most useful to her.

The rest of their classes were the standard curriculum, Science and Sorcery, Crownculus, and Grimnastics.

"I'm surprised Baba Yaga didn't make any of you take General Villainy other then Jackson," Raven said.

Frankie shrugged. "Actually, he was the only one that wasn't offered it out right. But Mr. Grimm told her that it was fine for us to not take it."

"I can't believe she had no idea that I was royalty. I mean, how many commoners have the grace to hold themselves so regally," Cleo groused.

"Yep, look as us commoners, stumbling around like lugs," Clawdeen drawled out sarcastically with a roll of her eyes. "Come on Cleo, get over it. This is another world, you're lucky she even knew what a Mummy was."

"I suppose, but I still want to have talk with that headmaster of yours about how dismissively I was treated." Cleo said to Raven.

Draculaura leaned into Raven and whispered in her ear. "Don't mind Cleo, she's just upset that certain expectations she had about a school for princess' weren't met."

Raven laughed as they neared the dorms. As the group rounded the corner a flash went off in their faces.

"Raven! Were did you go? What was like? Who are the new students you brought back with you? All of Ever After wants to know!" Blondie rattled off question after question, her mirrorpad held up in their faces as she tried to get the best angle.

"Blondie, how about you let everyone get settled in their dorms first?" Raven said, shielding her eyes from the little flash as Blondie took another picture.

"Blondie was it?" Cleo said, wrapping an arm around Blondie's shoulder and pushing the mirrorpad away. "You'll have your interview, don't you fret. But the day has only just started and already it's been exhausting. You understand, yes? Mirrorlag and all that. It wouldn't do to have us not looking our best for such a groundbreaking story."

"Oh, right, yes. But I have your word, I get to be the first to interview you?"

"Definitely, I, we, wouldn't want to keep the public in suspense for too long. We'll see you later then, darling."

"But I'm not Darling, I'm Blondie," She started to say before Cleo pressed a perfectly manicured finger to her lips, silencing her.

"Later." She said, her best, most in charge smile on her on lips. Blondie nodded and scampered away.

"Well, at least the paparazzi recognizes my status." Then she turn on her heal and headed down the hall, glancing at room numbers until she found hers.

"Wow, I've never seen anyone shut down Blondie so fast before," Raven said.

"Cleo has a way with getting what she wants if she puts her mind to it," Frankie said. Raven led them to their rooms and left them to unpack, wondering what she had just unleashed onto the student body. Well, the next few days would definitely be interesting.

EA

"So. Boring." Draculaura slumped onto a bench in the castleteria and flopped face forward with a groan. Damsel-in-Distressing had turned out to be not as much fun as she thought it would be. "But Holly was really nice. I'm glad I had her for a partner in that stupid tower and not the girl who kept falling asleep in class randomly."

Frankie laughed at her friend's predicament. She had liked all her classes so far. She looked around the room while they waited for the rest of their friends to get there. The school was certainly different from Monster High, but Frankie kind of liked it. It was bright and welcoming and every thing was so clean it sparkled. Venus would love how trees were integrated as part of the structure, rather then being torn down to make way for it.

But it had taken getting used to how bright everything was. It was like walking from a dark room directly into a summer day. The sterility of everything was almost blinding.

And there had been a lot of questions asked by other students. It was a bit overwhelming and she wondered if Raven had felt the same way when she ended up in Monster High. Probably more so, since Frankie had at least known she was coming here and what that might entail.

"There you are!" The bubbly blonde from that morning jogged up to their table and sat down. "You haven't forgotten, have you? Your friend promised me the scoop during lunch and it's lunch. Where's everyone else?" She asked, looking around the castleteria as though they were hiding from her. Frankie thought that maybe that happened to her a lot.

"We're here, Blondie," Raven said, coming up behind her. The rest of the ghouls and guys with her. Blondie spun around and smiled, grabbing Raven my her shoulders and pushing her into a seat.

"Okay, you sit there in the middle," Blondie began directing them all were to sit, not fazed in the slightest by onlookers.

She waved over two boys, one was Dexter and the other a tall boy with really pale skin, who Blondie called Humphrey, a name that caused the boys to snicker until the ghouls shot them disapproving looks.

Soon their faces were plastered all over the screens placed throughout the school.

Blondie was hyper active, but focused. She started with Raven, who was happy to get the whole story out to everyone at once. It had been getting rather annoying to have people constantly asking her the same questions. Though she left out the part about her magic being held under a curse.

Once that was out of the way, Blondie turned to the monsters. For the most part they were prepared for the questions she ask, but every once in a while she would slip something in that was either a bit too personal, "Do you ever feel guilty about being made from a bunch of dead girls?" or slightly offensive, "But wouldn't it be better to stick to your own kind when dating?"

Frankie had mostly tried not to think about were her parts had come from, but had to admit to herself that she had been a little relieved when she had found out that all her bits and pieces came from donated cadavers. Draculaura and Clawd had spent an ungodly amount of time reassuring eachother that they wouldn't let pesky things like life expectancy get in the way of being together. That ended with Draculaura throwing out the idea of getting her dad to turn him, to which Clawd had looked very uncomfortable.

Blondie shrugged everything off with a certain obliviousness that Frankie couldn't tell if it came from her need to keep reporting on them or if it was innocent naivete at how loaded some of the questions were.

Blondie still had one more doozy for them. "So, a single human in a school full of monsters. Isn't it scary?"

Frankie was about to go on rant about how one shouldn't judge and no one back home would ever dare hurt Jackson, when she was cut off by Deuce leaning back, smiling and saying, "Nah, everyone knows Jackson wouldn't hurt a fly. He's cool with us."

"But seriously," Clawd said when his chuckles subsided, "There aren't any humans at Monster High, he's just a species that's really good at _hiding_ his monster traits."

Jackson groaned and slid down in his seat. "Really guys, that pun was bad even by Monster High standards."

"Um, what?" Blondie looked so confused. There was a moment of silence as everyone debated whether or not to explain it. But the general consensus seemed to be that it was more fun to let their new classmates figure it out on their own.

"Jackson is a Hydebrid. Sort of." Clawd said.

"My dad is a Fire Elemental and my mom, well, isn't," Jackson added for clarity. That seemed to satisfy Blondie. She moved onto asking them what they thought of Ever After High so far and before long they were done.

As the boys Blondie had brought with her packed up all their equipment, microphones and lighting mostly, and Blondie began discussing post edits with Humphrey, Dexter broke off and took Raven aside.

Frankie watched from a distance while scarfing down her lunch. There wasn't much time left for her to eat, but she was curious about what was being said. Raven smiled shyly and nodded her head. Dexter went from looking nervous and bashful to cheerful. Raven patted him on the arm reassuringly as they parted ways.

Smiling to herself that things seemed to be going smoothly for her friend, Frankie went back to eating and listening to the others talk about the interview and their new classes. Despite the rough start in the morning and a bit of culture shock, this was looking to be a fun adventure.

EA

Raven sighed happily as she headed across campus and toward the dorms. Classes were over and the day had been surprisingly good. Once the interview was done, her classmates had stopped hounding her constantly with questions, which was a huge relief.

And the best part, the headmaster hadn't yelled at her once. In fact, she hadn't even seen him at all.

All in all, not a bad first day back.

Just as she rounded the building, heading to the doors, a figure called out to her. She turned to see Dexter making his way towards her.

"Hi," he said, shifting nervously, holding something behind his back.

"Hey, Dex." She smiled at him. "Something I can do for you?"

"No, yes, I mean," he trailed off before suddenly holding out a bouquet of flowers to her. "For you. I'm glad you're back."

"Thanks. They're beautiful." Raven's smiled turned wistful as she accepted the flowers. They really were beautiful, bright purples and blues, with a few small white ones as contrast.

She brought the bouquet up to her face, taking in their scent. Just as she inhaled the sweet, earthy scent she felt her magic spike a little. It wrapped around the bouquet and the petals instantly exploded.

But not into flames. The softest flutter of wings caressed her cheeks as a dozen butterflies scattered about them. Each one's color reflected the color of the flower it had once been.

On the upside, no one was hurt. On the downside, she was now holding a handful of headless stems.

Raven sighed, even with her magic no longer cursed, she still managed to screw up.

"I'm sorry Dexter, they were lovely. Really." She looked up at him, hoping he would understand only to see him staring at her in gobsmacked wonder.

"That was amazing. I didn't know you could do something like that." He was staring at her like she was made of pure light.

As far as Dexter was concerned she may as well have been. He had always thought she was gorgeous and sweet and talented, but he had just watch her turn flowers into butterflies and one of them had landed in her hair on the side of her head. It's blue and purple wings shimmering in the light and complimenting her hair and eyes.

He was stunned by her beauty.

"I used to do that all the time when I was a little girl. Although, back then I was doing it on purpose. I guess I still don't quite have control over my powers. I'm really sorry about the bouquet." Raven was suddenly very self conscious.

"No, no. It's fine. If your magic was going to do anything to them, there isn't anything more amazing than that. But I thought your magic only worked for evil?" Dexter looked slightly confused, but still obviously giddy at the display of magic he had just seen.

Raven frowned and spent a moment debating whether she should tell him or not. She hadn't really wanted to advertise she was no longer bound to evil magic, mostly because she was still a little bit afraid that the headmaster would expel her.

But she also really wanted to shout it out to anyone and everyone. Dexter, she knew, wouldn't tell anyone if she asked him not to. She could count on him.

"My magic was never evil. There was a curse on it and a doctor in the Monster world removed it. Now I can do anything I want with my magic, no matter what my reason for doing it is."

She looked down at the destroyed bouquet. "At least, when I use it intentionally." She added. To prove her point, to herself just as much as to Dexter, she waved her hand over the stems and new buds appeared on each one, growing larger before blossoming into full bloom, the bouquet restored to its former glory.

She looked up at Dexter through her eyelashes, watching his reaction. His eyes lite up like fairy lights and even through his glasses lens she found the sight stole her breath. She could look into those eyes all day.

She blinked rapidly at the stray thought, clearing away the slight fog that had taken hold of her brain.

Dexter, oblivious to what had just happened to her, grabbed her into a big hug. "That's great. I know how much this must mean to you. Now there's no excuse to force you to follow your destiny."

A completely different kind of fog filled her thoughts. He was genuinely happy for her. It felt nice, to know someone was happy that she was happy. Someone besides her father.

Suddenly he took a step back and a worried look crossed his face. "What did Headmaster Grimm say about it? I can't imagine he was too happy."

"I kind of, maybe, haven't mentioned it to him, yet." She giggle nervously as she watched Dexter's reaction.

He just appeared thoughtful for a few seconds then nodded his head in understanding.

"Yeah, I probably wouldn't tell him either if I was you. You're already on his radar enough without adding that to the mix. Who knows, if he found out he might even try to have the curse put back on you."

Icey shards of dread slid down Raven's spine. The headmaster pulling something like that hadn't occurred to her before and it was not a pleasant thought. She had just gotten her magic back to the way it was suppose to be, she didn't want to have go through that again.

"You won't tell anyone about this, right?" She asked him, a pleading look in her eyes.

"Of course not. If you don't want me too."

"Thanks Dexter. I'm not ready for everyone to know just yet. It means a lot to me that you'll keep it a secret."

"Anything for you," he said, smiling shyly at her. Then he cleared his throat and shuffled his feet a bit. "I mean, I'm a Prince Charming, protecting the princess is what we do."

"You think of me as your princess?" Raven asked, suddenly feeling bold and maybe a little excited.

Dexter's whole face turned tomato red as he realized what he had just said. He started to step away from her. Then his eyes fell to the bouquet of flowers held gently in her hands and seemed to steel himself for something.

He looked her right in the eye and said, "Yes, I do. I mean you are a princess, but what I mean is..." He trailed off, cleared his throat again and said, "I've wanted you to be my destiny since the day we met. And now that we can make our own, I was kind of hoping you would try writing me into your story."

His bravado instantly left him and he turned away from her and looked to the ground, muttering to himself.

Raven was speechless. That was the cheesiest thing anyone could have ever said to her. It was also the most romantic. She reached out a hand and turned his face to her, interrupting his self criticizing, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I would love to have you in my story, Dexter."

That night Raven fell asleep staring at a vase full of purple flowers, a butterfly still sitting on one petal, and wondered what the pages of The Tale of Raven and Dexter would hold. She hoped it had a happy ending.

EA

Milton Grimm walked with purpose through the halls of Ever After High. It was dinnertime and this was the first time he wasn't busy while it was guaranteed that the "new students" wouldn't be in their dorms.

He slipped through the shadows with easy and silently passed through the boy's dormitory. Finally, finding the room he wanted, he pulled out his master key and entered.

The room was spotless and mostly barren of personality. The teenagers from the other world wouldn't be staying too long, for which he was ecstatic to hear. The shorter their stay the less chance they had of actually infecting his school with their ideas of choosing their own destiny.

He had enough problems with Raven, he didn't need her to have backup in her war against him.

And hopefully one of her little soldiers would be the key to bringing her down.

Milton pulled open every dresser drawer, looked under both beds and mattress'. He shifted through every article of carefully folded and recklessly tossed clothing he saw. He even opened up the empty suitcase and duffel bag he found in the closet, hoping there would be a hidden compartment.

Nothing. Nadda. Zilch.

The books and papers on the desk only contained thronework. The suitcases only air. The dressers and closets only a weeks worth of clothes.

There were no little vials of mystery liquid anywhere. No notes or instructions hidden in the pages of notebooks.

That couldn't be. The boy had to have it on him.

Unless what he had heard was correct and they didn't follow their parents stories after all. But even then, there had to be something. Family tradition or lore. A human kid didn't attend a monster school just for the hell of it, there had to be a reason.

Grimm stomped out of the room, not caring if anyone saw at this point.

If the brat didn't have the potion with him, he should at least know how to make it. Milton would just have to pry it out of him, with force if necessary.

Before the monsters returned home, he'd have what he needed to give Raven the final push towards her proper destiny. One way or another.

* * *

This one was harder to write for me. There were more characters and I wanted to give all the monsters at least one mention, even if they weren't the most pivotal to the story on a whole. Also, like the first one, this story does not acknowledge anything that happens during or after Way Too Wonderland, nor does it acknowledge the MH relaunch. It also doesn't follow any lore that appears in the Susanne Selfors book series, but does have mentions of things from the Shannon Hale series. Basically, I did what I wanted with the Vault of Lost Tales, but used some character history from the first book series.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch 2

"Dexter," the multiverses most annoying prince shouted as he wrapped an arm around the shoulders of another boy.

"I'm not Dexter," Jackson said for what was probably the hundredth time in the last two days. Daring ignored him entirely.

"Just the little brother I was looking for!" Daring released Jackson's shoulder and pulled out a mirror, staring at his reflection while he talked. "I was hoping you wouldn't mind letting me borrow your Chemythistry thronework. I was so caught up reading the latest article about my amazing deeds in the school paper that I completely forgot about the assignment. You understand, of course."

"No."

"Perfect, I knew you would. I'll have it back to you before class starts."

"You didn't hear a single word I said, did you?"

"Yes, yes. That's fascinating," Daring said as he played with a few locks of his hair. Every strand had to be perfect for his adoring fans.

Jackson's eye twitched, partly from Daring and partly because he could once again hear the narrator, whom he was steadfastedly trying to ignore.

All day yesterday people in every class had confused him with that discount prince and it was beyond aggravating. Classmates, teachers and Bimbo Boy who was currently trying to leach off his thronework.

He might have offered his notes if Daring had gotten his name right, or at least bothered to actually look at him when talking to him.

"Eeee! It's Daring Charming!"

And now he was being trampled by a gaggle of schoolgirls with bad taste in men.

A vein throbbed in his temple as he fought his way out of the crowd and down the hall to his first class. In General Villainy the students seemed to find his similar appearance to a Charming amusing, but by default knew he wasn't one.

The same could not be said for his other classes.

If he had to say "I'm not Dexter" one more time he might just have to Hyde out on the school. A pissed off Holt who had no idea why he was pissed off was never a good thing. There tended to be a lot of property damage. All it would take was a press of a button.

Jackson took a deep breath, held it just long enough to feel slightly lightheaded, then let it out along with the frustration. He wouldn't unleash Holt on the school until the appointed time, but it really was temping sometimes to just not be for a while.

He stepped into class, holding the door for the girl behind him.

"Thanks Dexter."

The next student to open the door had no idea why, but the handle had been really hot to the touch.

EA

"Hey, Jackson."

It took Dexter almost half a minute to realize the boy with snake hair was talking to him.

He gave the exchange student an unimpressed look.

Deuce blinked hard at him, "Oh, sorry. You're the other one," he said and then continued on his way with a dismissive wave of his hand.

The constant mix up between him and the other guy was getting really annoying. At least this time it wasn't a teacher.

Professor Stiltskin had gone off on a long winded rant about how he wasn't going to go soft on him just because he was new here, in front of the whole class. Not to mention having to explain to his father that it hadn't been him in the earlier hero training class who hadn't known that they were suppose to fight the goblins, not make friends with them.

Or worst yet, why Mr. Badwolf had congradulated him on a job well done in General Villainy class. In front of said father. That had been awkward, to say the least. Nevermind the fact that Raven talked about Jackson just about every time Dexter was with her. Not as much as she talked about the "ghouls" as she called them, but still his name was mentioned at least once per conversation.

Having a morally grey doppleganger running around and possibly trying to steal his maybe girlfriend was turning out to be really taxing. Especially since he couldn't just pull out a magical croque hook and turn this one back into a doll.

Raven wouldn't like if he slayed one of her new friends. That would definitely put a strain on their relationship. And Dexter wasn't exactly sure what undoing magic would do to this particular monster.

Raven had said Jackson was a monster of some kind, but hadn't clarified in what way. During the interview everyone had been vague as to what the boy was, but still insisted that he wasn't human.

Dexter was rounding the corner, on his way to Crownculus, when he almost ran into a boy with really tan skin, red eyes and hair the color of a campfire. He was pretty sure he had never seen this boy before.

The kid also didn't look that happy.

The air in the hall was steadily getting hotter as the boy fidgited, eyes darting this way and that.

"All right, that's it!" the boy shouted to the walls. "Whoever is stalking me and reciting everything I do, better stop that right now! That's creepy as shit."

 _"Fuck."_

EA

Raven ran her hands over all the volumes of forgotten lore that had found their way into the library. She smiled to see names she recognised and ones she didn't. The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, etc.

She had no idea were they all came from, just like nobody seemed to know were the new section of the library came from either.

"Are you here to check out the new selection?" A cheerful voice said right in her ear. Raven may have screamed a little bit.

"Mr. Grimm, you startled me."

"My apologies, I didn't mean to give you a fright. What brings you here on this fine day?"

"Just looking for a book on prank spells. Not to prank anyone! I mean, I know someone who was under one and was curious about it. That's all."

"This way, that way, the forest's secrets keep until the notes are played."

Raven puzzled that one out for a bit before finally answering him. "I don't know if I should say. It's kind of personal. Thanks for the offer, but I'm sure I can find it on my own."

"I see. I thought perhaps you were looking for a book about the spell put on your own magic, but if that's not the case I won't pry."

"Wait! You know about that?" Raven stared at him wide-eyed.

Giles Grimm patted her on the shoulder and smiled. "I'd been trying to find the reversal for it for sometime and was quite relieved when you came back with it already gone. That curse is not one particular to this world. Only those who have glimpse other worlds would know it."

Raven frowned. That was it. It had to have been her mother. She had been kind of hoping she had been wrong, but her mother was the only person she knew who was that invested in both magic and other worlds.

"Smiles are suppose to point up," Giles said. "Do not fret, it is very difficult to put the same person under the same spell twice. You should be immune to that one now. Come, look at all the lost books that can now see and be seen."

Raven tried to imagine the books seeing, but couldn't quite wrap her head around the idea. Sometimes Giles Grimm said things stranger than even Maddie could come up with. And Maddie had once said she had gone for a lovely walk in a portrait of a field full picnickers. The people having picnics had been nice, but the food had all tasted like acrylic paint.

"Were all these books really in the Vault of Lost Tales?"

"Oh yes. They were deemed dangerous. But it would appear that Ever After herself as decided that we are ready for them.

"Ever After decided it? Oh, you mean the magic of our world brought them all up. But how? It's never done anything like this before."

Giles smirked.

"Has it done something like this before?" Raven said.

"Perhaps our world isn't as rule oriented as everyone believes. Even the Storybook of Legends will change things as needed. Our wonderlandful little friends would have been the first of their families to actually sign the book."

"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is in the Storybook though, how could it be that The Mad Hatter and the Cheshire Cat never signed?"

"When I was your age, the book did not have that entry. It only happened after our worlds collided. The Storybook of Legends was not created to bind people to stories. It was created to record our history so that future generations could learn from the mistakes and triumphs of our past. But over the years it has been corrupted to what it is now."

"That's so sad."

"Always with the fretting. If you frown too long your face will become stuck like that. Smile my dear, someday everything will be as it should be. And it all starts with you."

"Me?"

"Well, your generation of course. Every new generation as the opportunity to correct the mistakes of the past, to grow strong from them and overcome them." Giles smiled at her and gently poked her on the forehead. "But it doesn't hurt if they have someone to lead them into the new day. Who says only doves can symbolize hope?"

He turned and walked away, leaving Raven with more questions than when she came here and a budding sense of responsibility she wasn't sure she could handle.

EA

Princessology had sounded like it should have been fun. Really it had.

Frankie was rethinking that as she watched Cleo practically strangle the teacher. Misses Her Majesty the White Queen was, perhaps vapid was too strong a word, but it was all Frankie could think of.

The woman tended to get distracted easily and go off into random tangents, none of which made any sense. Well, the girl with the heart on her face seemed to understand her, but she was the only one.

This particular teacher also seemed to be oblivious to several student's heritages. Or at the worst, was purposefully ignoring said heritage for whatever reason. Cleo, expecting a certain level of royal pandering, was not taking it well.

"That's Misses Her Majesty the White Queen. A proper princess uses proper titles."

"Oh, I'll call you by your proper title all right, Miss Loon, when you start treating me with the same level of respect as I deserve. I've been a real princess longer then you've been an ink stroke on a page." Cleo was livid. If this was any other teacher, Cleo would have been removed from the classroom by now, but Wonderlandians were all off on their own programs it seemed.

"Well, I never. A royal queen of Wonderland, being called something so common as a mere loon," Misses Her Majesty the White Queen said, "Why I have half a mind to send you directly to the headmaster's office. Only half a mind, mind you. I have no idea where the rest of it has gone off too. But I guarantee you, that if I had a whole mind you would be in quite a spot of trouble."

"I wonder how Clawdeen and the boys are doing?" Draculaura said, distracting Frankie from the argument that was still going on in the front of the class. The vampire was staring out the window, long since bored with class in general.

"They might have had the right idea about taking Hero Training. I wonder if it's too late to transfer to a different class. If I had known Princessology was just about how to look pretty and do nothing, I never would have signed up for it," Frankie slouched down in her seat. It was so reductive.

"Well, of course that is what the class is about," Briar said, turning to look back at the two girls behind her. In the front of the class, her best friend forever after was desperately trying to calm the two combatants down. Apple was failing miserably, mostly because Cleo was refusing to back down and the White Queen's nonsensical retorts were just making matters worse.

"But, shouldn't you be learning how to talk to your subjects or make peace treaties with other kingdoms or, I don't know, something important?" Frankie asked.

"Well, no. We're fairytale princess'. We don't act, we react. Which is mostly just waiting for a prince we may or may not have met before to come and rescue us. I guess Apple and I are kind of lucky, we get to sleep through the wait. Servants will come make sure our mostly lifeless bodies look presentable when the day comes, but we still have to take the class." Briar yawned loudly and her head began to droop slightly.

"But girls like Holly are going to have a lot of waiting to do, so...this...class...is," she trailed off with a half snort of a snore and her head flopped onto her desk, fast asleep.

Draculaura and Frankie looked to each other in slight alarm.

"Don't worry about it. She does that a lot," said Holly, who was sitting just on the other side of Frankie. "Briar doesn't say it, but I think she'd prefer to be in Hero Training too. Or at least a class with more excitement," Holly paused a moment to cast a glance towards the front of the room, where Cleo and the White Queen were now standing facing away from each other, arms crossed and still arguing. Apple looked about to cry.

"Then why not take one of those classes?" Draculaura said, playing with a pigtail.

"Because that's not what our stories call for." Holly shrugged, it was just the way things were.

"A princess should strive to always look her best and never engage in an activity that would damage her overall appearance. Since an immaculate princess is a princess that others will look up to and want to emulate," Darling said. She smiled sweetly and oh so charmingly, but Frankie noted that something about it rang just a little false somehow.

"You can't really believe that a ghoul, er, girl, should just sit around and wait for a man to save her just because she's a princess. I mean, what if other Monsters would be hurt and you have the opportunity to help. Isn't that more important than looking pretty? Don't get me wrong," Frankie held up her hands to stall the two from responding, "I want to always look my beast just as any other ghoul, but somethings are more important is all I'm saying."

Holly bit her lip and looked away, "It's tradition here. That's all."

Darling remained suspiciously quite and suddenly seemed to find a scratch on her desk to be very interesting.

"You both agree with me, don't you?" Frankie realized.

Darling looked up, slightly panicked. "No, of course not. It is a great honor for both myself and my family that I fulfill the role of a proper princess or damsel-in-distress when the time comes."

Draculaura gave the youngest Charming a discerning look, paying attention to all the details. Darling was perfectly manicured, primped and styled. Her makeup was flawless and she held herself with all the poise expected of royalty. But the muscles on her arms were well defined and there was the barest hint of wild in her scent.

Clawd would probably be able to smell it even better, but vampire noses were nothing to laugh at either. Her perfume covered it up for everyone else, but the supernatural undead could pick it up anyway. Sweat and leaves, the smell of forests and adventure.

"Yep," Draculaura said to Frankie, ignoring the girl's denial. "She agrees with us."

Darling looked to Holly wide-eyed and shook her head furiously. Holly just smiled at her. "It's okay Darling, you don't have to be on your best behavior with me. I would understand if even you got frustrated by it all sometimes. We all do, even Apple."

Darling blushed and nodded shyly, "Maybe, on occasion," she admitted. Frankie smiled as she watched the two girls begin to form a bond stronger then just classmate friends. This was what it was all about, bringing people together.

A frustrated roar and the door slamming interrupted them and caused every girl in the class to jump.

"What'd I miss?" Briar yelled in panic as she shot awake and looked around in bewilderment.

At the front of the class stood a contrite Cleo and a dazed White Queen, Apple was nowhere to be found, having stormed out of the class.

Holly turned with a laugh to Darling, "See, even Apple has her days."

The tension dissolved and the girls all found themselves giggling, even the teacher. Maybe the class wasn't so bad after all, Frankie thought.

EA

Wooing. Clawd frowned down at his own shoes. It was harder than it seemed. Apparently he had a very different idea of what was romantic than the fairytale world did.

The teacher had told him in no uncertain terms that it was not an appropriate form of wooing to compare a maiden to steak. Even if he personally found steak to be the most amazing thing ever. Howling was also not a proper serenade, according to the teacher.

The boys in the class had laughed and one had suggested that this was why wolves should stay in villain classes. Which was totally unfair considering one of the boys' idea of wooing was a horrible come-on followed by turning into a frog from embarrassment.

Of course the frog version had then waxed poetic about how the maiden compared to a gentle spring breeze which earned him a middling grade. Clawd growled under his breath.

A frog had done better than him.

At least Dexter had been nice about it, suggesting a beginners guide that the library had.

Clawd looked down at the book. _How to Talk to Fair Maidens Without Sounding Like a Troll._

Did he really sound like a Troll? Not the kind of Troll they had at Monster High at any rate.

The class had until Friday, which was two and half days away, to woo a girl of their choosing into going with them to a ball that was to be held on Saturday night. The instructions where clear, he couldn't just ask, he had to make her swoon.

He was never good at making Draculaura swoon. Giggle? No problem. Leap into his arms? Easy. Squeal loud enough to make his ears bleed? Been there, done that. But swoon? That was just not something he'd ever managed. Well, not the kind of swooning he needed. He highly doubted that the teacher would pass him if he made her faint in horror by eating raw steak next her again.

"This class would be no problem for that no good, lying, heart braking clown Valetine," he grumbled as he shoved his book into his locker.

At least he was killing it in Hero Training, which was his next class for the day. It was also one of a few classes he shared with both his bloodies. Deuce and Jackson had been doing surprising well in that class too. It probably helped that all of them were used to grueling casketball practices and games.

Deuce had gotten in trouble for stoning his first opponent on the first day, but years of casketball against a variety of monsters had honed his reflects. It certainly didn't hurt that he'd spent a good portion of his younger years having gladiator sword battles with cousins during family gatherings. Apparently, it was a Greek and Roman monster thing.

Jackson's latent monster traits gave him a strength and speed advantage over all the normie kids. Which was always amusing to watch. The Hydebrid's generally weak appearance always threw people off, so the expressions on their faces when he trounced them was always good for a laugh. His intelligence and ability to pick up on others weak spots meant he caught on quick and could be ruthless when the mood struck him. It was what made him so formidable on the court.

Clawd headed out to the field and smiled. He'd talk to his friends about the wooing assignment. They'd tease for sure, but with their help he'd probably manage. If he had to be stuck in a strange new world, it was good knowing someone had his back.

Now to go kick some royal butt in Hero Training.

EA

Clawdeen was having the time of her life. There weren't too many ghouls at school who could keep up with her on a good day, but now she finally had a challenge.

She raced down the path through the woods, a flash of red in the corner of her eye the only sign that Cerise was about to over take her. Between them a small Direwolf cub yipped and howled as he tried to match their pace.

The girl could really move and trampling through the woods was way more fun then Clawdeen had thought it would be. She was really happy that she had found someone here she could be herself around. All the pampered princesses were just too much for her liking.

Sure, she could talk fashion with a couple of them, but when she suggested going for a run, Ashlynn had declined, citing glass footwear to not be the best for heavy exercise and Lizzie had looked aghast before shouting "Off with your head!" at her.

A simple no would have worked just as well.

Luckily for her, Clawdeen had bumped into Cerise, who seemed to have materialized out of the shadows. Clawdeen had asked if there was a good spot to get out some pent up energy and before long the two had challenged each other to a race.

"What's the matter, going to fast for you?" Clawdeen taunted, "You'll be left behind at that pace."

Cerise flashed her a quick, devilish smile and put on a burst of speed, surprising Clawdeen.

"Hey, I was just trying to give the new girl a head start, just to be fair." Cerise moved ahead of her as they rounded a bend in the path.

Clawdeen answered with a howl and pushed herself forward as fast as she could go. Her breath burned in her lungs as she let loose, slipping into wolf form.

Smiles spread across both girls faces. Best free period ever.

EA

Raven had forgotten her Chemythstry book in her room. It wasn't a big deal, she had lunch before that class so decided to swing by her room before heading to the castleteria.

She opened the door to the sounds of muffled sobs.

Apple lay, face down, on her bed, staining her pillowcase with her mascara infused tears. Raven forgot all about her book and made a beeline for her upset roommate. Apple didn't even notice her enter or sit on the bed.

"Apple? What happened?" She said, laying a gentle hand on Apple's shoulder in an effort to sooth her.

Apple stilled beneath her touch and her sobs quieted. She turned a mascara smeared face to Raven and sent her a withering glare.

"This is all your fault. Why did you have to bring those people here? Why couldn't you have just come back home on your own?"

Raven was taken aback by the heated questions and accusations.

"Wait, I don't understand. Did one of them do something to you? Maybe it was just a misunderstanding. They're all really nice, I'm sure whatever happened was just a culture clash thing." Raven really hoped so. She had plenty of experience with culture clash during her time at Monster High.

"The girl with all the bandages is most certainly not nice! She's argumentative and rude and demanding. She started a fight with a teacher and then neither of them would listen to me at all when I tried to fix it. And then in Cooking Classic I overheard that really pale girl with the fangs tell Ashlynn that she didn't understand why Hunter couldn't just be her prince because if they got married he'd be a royal by marriage anyway."

Apple paused to take a deep breath then said, rather loudly, "It isn't suppose to work that way! They've been questioning every story, making every excuse for why our world is wrong, and telling everyone that they shouldn't follow their destinies."

Raven highly doubted the last part, would have to question one of them about the middle part, but firmly believed the first part. After spending time in a world that didn't have predetermined scripts to follow she was beginning to see some of the glaring flaws in the whole follow your parent's story mentality too.

Ashlynn was already a princess, because her mother married a prince, so she was already not following the Cinderella story. What would it matter if Hunter was the dashing young villager in need of a happy ending and Ashlynn was the princess forced to choose a husband at a ball? Or for that matter, what did it matter if they just got married after high school and ruled their kingdom justly, leaving someone new to have a story to tell?

Hell, there were probably new stories unfolding all over Ever After, but no one noticed because they were all so caught up in the old ones.

Raven looked away and frowned. She couldn't tell these thoughts to Apple, the other girl would never understand. She decided to address Apple's second accusation as best she could and leave the others for another time.

"They don't think our world is wrong, and I don't think they mean to imply it. I'm sure they are just learning about it and comparing it to their own. If you had been the one that ended up in their world, you'd do the same thing without even realizing it. I know I did at first. Maybe not in the same way, but I did do it. Coming to a new world with all new ways in which people live and think is hard. But I'm sure if you tried just thinking about things from their perspective, you'd see that they're just curious and trying to understand."

"The boy with snakes on his head said that any relationship built on the foundation of "he rescued me because the plot told him to" was a relationship doomed to failure." Apple gave Raven a point blank stare as she said this.

"Aw," Raven said, suddenly unable to meet Apple in the eye. "Deuce can take things a bit personal sometimes when it comes to stuff like that. Both his relationship with Cleo and Draculaura and Clawd's have come under some pretty heavy fire for being mixed species. They know from experience how much stronger a pair can be when they've truly faced problems. And not just manufactured problems, but real world ones, like incompatible diets or parents who disapprove. They stay together not because the story says so, but because they genuinely care for each other. They'll never wake up one day and question if their partner's love for them is real or just an expectation."

"And that's fine for them, they don't have a destiny. We do. That's why we're here!"

"Are you so sure about that?"

"What do you mean?" Apple asked, taken aback by the question.

"Have you never considered Maddie's father? He didn't have to sign the Storybook of Legends because he didn't go here. But as soon as the Wonderlandians were trapped in our world, the book suddenly had them in it. No one here had ever heard of Frankenstein or Dracula, but now their books are in the library. Mr. Grimm was talking about it the other day. If the book can add their parents stories to itself, then why can't it add new stories that we make?"

"I, but, that's..." Apple sat there wide eyed and scared. "What are you suggesting?"

"I don't know," Raven admitted. "I haven't put much thought into what any of it means. I'm just throwing the facts as I know them out there. Maybe it doesn't mean anything. But..." Raven was about to tell Apple the truth about her magic. The words sat on the tip of her tongue ready to fly, but she looked at her already gobsmacked roommate and stalled.

She couldn't tell Apple when Apple was already upset. It would just make things worse. Especially since getting the curse removed and then coming home, Raven had begun to question who else was under a curse just to force them to follow their destinies.

It didn't make sense for Hopper to turn into a frog randomly, the story is about a normal prince being turned into a frog for a constant amount of time before a kiss permanently fixes him. And Sleeping Beauty didn't have narcolepsy. She slept like a normal person until the finger prick. Happily ever after was suppose to let her sleep normally again. And there were several students who were already much too old to play their roles.

And then there were the ones who went off script already. What terrible thing befell them that wasn't just bluster of other, superstitious people? Nothing. Nothing at all. Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Wolf were happy together and had a strong, beautiful daughter. Maybe that had been their true destiny all along.

"Apple, if you want to be Snow White, then be Snow White. Because if that's what will make you happy, then that's what you should do. I won't try to change your mind. Because it's your choice. But if you've had time to think about it and decide that you'd rather stay Apple White, then I support you in that too. Because I'm your friend and want to see you happy. Real happy, not storybook happy. But I'd also like to know that you've really considered that the path you choose is right for _you_."

"Just think about it. Nothing has to change, the Monsters can only tell people what it's like to not live in a world of destiny, to choose their own stories and give their own take on life from that perspective. They don't want to change everyone's mind by force. That includes you. Sometimes they may come off as dictating, but some of them have really big personalities, that's all. I promise. They just want to know that others are happy with their lives, like they are."

Apple gave Raven a watery smile. "Big personality is an understatement. That Cleo girl is something else. So brash. Is she really a princess?"

Raven laughed nervously. "Yes, in a manor of speaking. It's kind of a 5,000 year long story."

"Oh, her book must be huge."

And tension melted from the room, Apple and Raven both laughing, trying to imagine a book that contained a story so long. The laughter was interrupted by shouts out in the quad filtering up through the window. Confused both girls went the window and looked out to see a small crowd forming around two boys fighting.

"Is that Dexter?!" Raven shouted, then turned and booked it out the door, Apple hot on her heals.

EA

Raven reached the edge of the crowd, stopping suddenly causing Apple to almost slam into her.

"What's going on?" She asked Cedar.

"Dexter and one of the new kids are fighting." Cedar said, being a bit more on point then normal and not expanding any more on it.

"But why?" Raven asked, somewhat frustrated as she tried to squeeze through the group.

"I'm not sure," Cedar said, "I mean, I'm not sure why that boy currently fighting Dexter is, but the one that was fighting him was because Dexter accused him of trying to court you and steal you away to the monster world. I also have no idea when the Monster boys switched. One minute Dexter was fighting the kid that looks like him, but then suddenly he was fighting the kid from Muse-ic who had the DJ battle with Melody the other day. That was fun."

Raven had stopped listening to the explanation after that. She left Apple to hear the rest as she waded through the press of bodies. She needed to get to the front of the crowd and separate them before Holt set everything on fire. Including Dexter.

She finally got to the front and stared at the flailing boys. Dexter had a split lip and his hair was messier than normal, his clothes dirty and ripped like Raven had never before seen as they grappled on ground. Holt was throwing wild punched and kicks, the air was simmering like a hot summers day, despite the fact that it was the being of autumn.

Panicking slightly, Raven called upon her magic to abruptly pull them apart, leaving them hanging in midair.

"That is enough!" She shouted at them. "What is the matter with you two?" She treated both to a stern, disapproving looking.

"Hey, don't get mad at me. I don't even know why I'm fighting. One minute I'm making plans to help out at a party, the next I'm in the middle of a brawl. I just went with the flow." Holt said. "The way I see it, if Prince Uncharming over there got my good side angry enough to throw down, then he has it coming."

"Oh for the love of," Raven muttered under her breath. She turned to Dexter who seemed to be calming down, but wouldn't look her in eye.

"Sorry." He didn't offer an excuse or explanation. Raven sighed and lowered them to the ground as the crowd dispersed.

The other students thinned out enough that Raven could make out her Monster friends running towards them from the direction of the castleteria, Deuce in the lead with Frankie in a frantic second. They slowed to a trot as they got closer and saw the fight was over.

"What happened? Holt, tell me you didn't start a fight here. That is not a good impression to give everyone," Frankie began. Holt raised his hands in surrender, denying responsibility.

Raven pulled Dexter off to the side. "Do you want to tell me about it?"

Dexter slumped and muttered something to himself. Raven reached out and turned his head so she could see his eyes.

"I don't want to lose you again," he admitted. "Every time I hear them talk about their world, I can't help to worry that you'll go back with them. That you'll leave. I can't blame you if you do, it sounds like a place that you'd fit in perfectly. I'm sorry, I'm being selfish."

Raven sighed deeply. She hadn't meant to make him think she wasn't happy here.

"I'm not going back, not permanently anyway. Maybe for a visit every once in awhile. That can't be the only reason you got into a fight with Holt."

"Who?" Dexter gave her a confused look. "Wait, I was fighting the one kid, how and when did that other one show up?"

Raven laughed, "They're the same person, it's what makes Jackson a monster. Two forms, two identities. A single person split in two."

"Oh, well that's," he paused to collect his thoughts, "confusing."

"Yeah, that's one way to put it. Now, do you want to tell me the rest."

"I don't want to lose you."

"I told you, I'm not going to move to the monster world."

"No, that's not what I mean. Raven, I'd move with you if you'd take me. But when you talk about your time there you always bring up Jackson, and when I was talking to him today, it was all about how well you two understand each other. You talked to him about things you've never talked to me about. You let him help when you won't let me. I just don't feel like I can compete with that."

Oh, ooh. It was Raven's turn to not be able to look him in the eye. She hadn't meant to make him feel like he wasn't important to her.

"I'm so sorry Dexter. I didn't mean to make it seem like I don't want to be with you. You are one of the reasons I decided to come back. And I don't talk to you about some things because I don't want to burden you with my problems or get you into trouble with your father. He's already not happy about us spending time together."

There was a heavy silence, where Raven watched Dexter from the corner of her eye. He seemed to be struggling over what he wanted to say. Finally after what seemed ages, he took her hand.

"I don't care if Father disapproves. Because of you we have the option to choose our own destinies. You are my choice."

It was the most romantic thing she had ever heard. She felt her eyes water and lips stretched into the widest smile she'd ever had. She flung her arms around his neck and held on tight. His arms wrapped around her waist and squeezed just as tightly.

"You are my choice too. Never forget that."

"So, we're okay."

"Yeah, we're okay. You still need to apologize though."

"Curses."

EA

"I can't! I don't even know how the changed got triggered this time. I can't remember the last time I was me when it was this quiet. I gots to tell you, the world ain't nearly as much fun when I don't have my own personal soundtrack to go with it."

Raven frowned as they approached, picking up on only half the conversation.

Frankie was fidgeting with her hands, fingers going to pick at stitches only to wince as she pinched herself.

"Maybe it's because of the way this world works. I mean, we all changed a little when we got here." Frankie said, rubbing at her pinched wrist, which was no longer as easily detachable as it once was.

"I don't think so Frankie Fine. We been doin' the usual since we got here. This is the first time I haven't needed a beat to beat someone. If you catch what I'm sayin'."

"What's going on?" Raven asked. She looked around the worried group, drawing attention to herself and Dexter.

"Holt's here," Clawdeen said. For the first time, Raven noticed Cerise was with them. The girl shrugged and waved at Raven. Raven gave her a smile in return.

"I can see that, but what's the big deal? He comes and goes a lot. Right?"

"Well, yeah." Frankie began, shifting her weight back and forth from leg to leg. "But there's no music. Their trigger is loud music. Without it, he should be Jackson right now."

"Shoulda, woulda, who cares. If he wants to let me run free, I ain't questioning it. But I gotta say, all this talk about how Jackson is suppose to be here is starting to make me feel unwanted."

"It's not like that, Holt and you know it." Frankie stopped fidgeting and put her hands on her hips, sending the boy a disapproving frown.

"I know, I know." He paused to twitch a bit and sent a glower at Raven. "You brought the loudmouth with you."

Dexter scowled darkly, "Forget it. I'm not apologizing if that's how he's going to be."

"I wasn't talking about you, 2.0. I was talking about the narrator."

Dexter backpedaled slightly while everyone else just groaned.

 _Look, just try to ignore me. I've been good about avoiding you, er, both of you, but I really have to advance the plot now."_

Fine, I'll try. But I make no promises if it gets weird.

 _That shouldn't be a problem. It's not like I'm going to narrate a bathroom trip or anything._

Holt rolled his eyes and muttered darkly to himself. The other Monsters seemed to be straining to hear whatever he was hearing, but after a second or two of nothing they shrugged it off. Apparently they just weren't mad enough to hear the narrator. For which she is eternally grateful, by the by.

Before the conversation could continue back on track however, an authoritative clearing of the throat caused everyone to flinch and look up to see the headmaster. He was standing just behind the group and looked none to pleased with any of them.

Just to his right stood the cousins Gus and Helga, both furiously stuffing candy into their mouths from a bag they clutched between them. As soon as they were spotted both scampered away with a squeak.

Headmaster Grimm didn't even acknowledge the two tattle tales. Instead, he turned his disapproving eye to Dexter, who wilted under the gaze.

"Unsanctioned fighting on school grounds. I'm disappointed in you. I expect the "new students" to not be up to date on the school policies of decorum, but for a Charming to be brawling like a common pub crawler! Unheard of!"

Dexter flinched. Holt paled and with a flinch and a flash of light Jackson was back. He looked around, taking in the situation and upon seeing the annoyed look on the headmaster's face, suddenly found his sneakers to be very interesting.

Grimm's mustache twitched at this, but otherwise he seemed unimpressed by the sudden switch.

"I will have both of you in my office. Now."

EA

"See," said Apple in a hushed whisper. "This is exactly what I was talking about. Now poor Dexter is in trouble. Dexter! He's one of the most even tempered princes in the school, but a couple of afternoons with them and he's fighting in the mud like a, a, barbarian."

Raven barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "It's been sunny for the last several days and they were in the quad. There's no mud." She turned to Cerise and hoped the other girl had some better insight as to what started everything.

"Dexter gave me a very brief explanation, but do you know what happened?"

Cerise's eyes went wide and she pulled on the edge of her hood. "I don't know that it's right for me to tell you. It was kind of personal."

"I know it was about me," Raven said, feeling guilty about the whole thing. On the other side of the office door Dexter and Jackson were getting a lecture for sure, but a spell around the headmaster's office prevented anyone, even the Wolves, from hearing it.

"Jackson may have strongly suggested that Dexter was a coward for not openly defending you on the whole rebel thing. And Dexter may have strongly suggested that Jackson was using their similar appearance to make a move on you and that he should stick to 'his own kind'. I think that might have been when the first punch was thrown."

Cerise cocked her head to the side in thought, then added, "Well, it was more of a full bodied tackle than a punch. I can't tell you which one it was, I wasn't close enough to get their scent to tell them apart."

Raven groaned. She had hoped that they'd be friends, since they really did have a few things in common besides her. But Dexter's insecurity and her not being upfront with him on her feelings had probably put a permanent wedge between them.

She really needed to work on the whole talk about your feelings thing.

The door opened and the two boys shuffled out of the headmasters office looking both dejected and angry at the same time. Raven cringed as Dexter muttered something about detention.

"Sorry," she said, brushing a lock of unruly hair out of his eyes.

"It's not your fault," he said, his eyes shifting briefly to Jackson, who was steadfastly ignoring him. "On the bright side, it wasn't with Prof. Rumplestiltskin. I only have to clean out the stables, not spin straw into gold. I like animals and the hard work." He smiled at her, a genuine Charming smile.

Raven returned the smile with a conspiratory wink. "Maybe I could help out a bit?" She wiggled her fingers to show what she meant. "It's partly my fault, I should have made more time for us to see each other."

Dexter blushed and looked down. She barely made out his reply. "Well, I suppose if I get done quicker than anticipated, we could, maybe, go into town and get something to eat." He glanced up at her over the rim of his glasses and she felt her heart flutter. The thought that she would not only help, but do the whole thing plus his homework for the next year raced through her head. She blinked rapidly, dispelling whatever weirdness that had been and instead nodded her head enthusiastically.

"I'd love to."

"Great, it's a date then," he said. He took her hand and bowing low, kissed the back of it. "I look forward to it. I mean, not the detention part, though it'll certainly be more fun with you there, but you know, the date part."

She giggled as his momentary suaveness turned quickly shifted back into his usual nervous babbling. The occasional times when Dexter acted like a storybook prince were great and all, but if Raven were honest, she kind of preferred the sweet, bashful Dexter. There was something more honest about him that way and she found it far more charming than textbook chivalry.

Now that that was over, however, Raven became aware that they had an audience. She turned to find a wide-eyed Cerise and a slacked jawed Apple watching them. Cerise gave a tiny smile and looked away while Apple's eyes darted between them. She made a noise in the back of her throat that Raven could only describe as a thoughtful whine.

Apple's shoulders slumped, she closed her mouth and she contemplated the ground.

"Apple? Are you okay?" Raven reached out a hand to place on her friend's shoulder, but was waylaid by Apple raising a hand, asking for a minute to collect herself.

With a deep breath, Apple squared her shoulders and stood ramrod straight. She then turned on her heel and walked away without saying a word.

Raven turned to Cerise, then Dexter looking for an explanation to the strange behavior. Both just shook their heads, just as confused and concerned as she was.

"Maybe Daring will know," Dexter said, "I'll ask next time I see him."

"Sooo, what was that all about?" Draculaura's voice reminded them that they weren't alone. The Monsters were all still there, watching the whole scene. Each had a different expression.

Draculaura looked hungry for gossip, Cleo gave them a discerning raised eyebrow, Clawd looked ready to either growl or cry, Duece and Clawdeen both looked bored, Frankie had a dreamy eyed stare going on and Jackson just looked annoyed at having to still be in the same hall as Dexter.

The darkening black eye the Hydebrid was sporting probably didn't help matters any.

No. It doesn't.

Raven glanced at Dexter, remembering why they were all here. He was doing his best to pretend the other group wasn't there, but his tongue was probing his split lip thoughtfully.

Suddenly Raven was very weary about having them in the same room together. At least the damages were different, so people should be able to tell them apart. Unless they got healed. She looked down at her hands.

She could fix the injuries, they were simple enough.

"Alright you two. I'll fix you both up, but you have to promise me you won't fight anymore."

"Fine," Jackson said.

"Fair enough," said Dexter.

Raven lead them away from the office not wanting Headmaster Grimm to find her performing "good magic". Once they were in a secluded spot, she set about healing first Dexter's lip and then Jackson's eye.

"Will you two be able to handle detention together? It wouldn't look good if you got into a fight while in the middle of being punished for getting into a fight." Frankie said as Raven finished up, the black eye turning from purple to yellow under the glow of her hands.

"We have different detentions. It won't be a problem," Dexter said, running his tongue over the spot a scab had been moments before.

"I only have to help organize the new Classical Horror books in the lie-bury, I mean library. Easy. He got stuck with stable duty." Jackson jabbed a dismissive thumb in Dexter's general direction.

"I wouldn't be so sure that you got the better deal." There was the hint of venom in Dexter's voice that Raven was neither expecting or had ever heard before.

"Don't start. You both promised." She warned them, hands on her hips.

"What has gotten into you?" Frankie said, marching up to Jackson and dragging him away by the ear. "I expect this from Holt, but not from you."

"Even I have my limits," was all Jackson said on the matter.

The monsters all shared a concerned look with each other. Deuce and Clawd whispered something to each other too quiet for Raven to hear, though Cerise perked up and seemed to be listening intently. As did Clawdeen.

Raven was sure she'd hear about it later from one or the other.

"Look, why don't we all just go back to our classes and later we can work on getting along. Okay?" Raven said. She received nods from everyone, along with Clawdeen grumbling that they had missed lunch.

Cerise sent Raven a wave goodbye and promptly vanished into the shadows with a tug of her hood and a turn. Raven was so going to have to get herself one of those cloaks someday.

"We should get going too," Dexter said. Though he didn't move from were he stood next to her.

"Yeah," Raven said in agreement. She started to step away, but then stopped. Before she could over think it, she turn abruptly and gave Dexter a quick peck on the cheek before quickly making her way to her next class.

She left Dexter standing there with a stupid grin slowly spreading across his face. He was late to class.

EA

The ghouls and Raven all sat around the common room, Raven doing her best in helping them understand some of their thronework. Or, at least, that was what they were suppose to be doing.

It was painfully obvious that Frankie wasn't paying any attention.

After the twenty ninth sigh, she was counting, Raven had finally had enough.

"Okay, what's wrong?"

Everyone instantly put down their pencils and books, turning to focus on Frankie as though they had all just been waiting for someone else to be the first to ask.

"It's just not like Jackson to be so, so, hostile. I know somethings wrong, but he won't tell me what."

"Oh, is that all?" Cleo said, "He's a boy, Frankie. Even if he's one of the more attentive ones, he's still not going to want to talk about his feelings. The Y chromosome comes hardwired to avoid such things."

"That's not true and you know it," Clawdeen said. Then added, "Well, maybe some are. I'm not sure that any of my brother's even know the word 'feelings'."

"That is true. It's like pulling teeth to get Clawd to talk about things like that," Draculaura said. "But this is Jackson we're talking about. He's much more comfortable with things like that."

"I heard Deuce say Jackson has been acting weird ever since we got here. On edge and jittery," Clawdeen said, recounting the conversation she had overheard after the detentions were given out. "Like he was hiding something."

Clawdeen scrunched up her face as soon as she said that, "Wait. Hide. Hyde. Oh, I get it now!

Boy, do I feel stupid."

"Not that I'm not happy for you over whatever revelation you just had, but can we stay on point," Frankie asked. "It must be bad if even Deuce and Clawd are worried."

"Unless you can get him to talk, there's not much we can do," Draculaura shrugged her shoulders. Jackson and Holt were her friend too, she had probably known them the longest out of all the ghouls, being his neighbor and all, but even she couldn't understand the sudden aggressiveness.

"There are a lot of people who can do magic here. Maybe someone put a curse on him as a prank?" Raven suggested.

"Maybe the whole hearing voices thing is getting to him," Cleo suggested. "I mean, I'd be put out too if I was going insane. Not that I'd ever have such a ridiculous ailment."

"He was acting strange before we got here though. It's just gotten worse since coming here," Frankie said. Hoping she wasn't the only one to notice.

"How so?" Raven asked.

"Well, secretive. He would vanish for study howl and sometimes even lunch and wouldn't have an explanation for were he was going. I thought maybe someone was bullying him, but that wasn't it. Ever since he became friends with Toralei no one will go within an meter of him with bad intentions."

"Yeah, you know, that's something I didn't see coming. How did that even happen?" Clawdeen said, throwing her hands up in the air for emphasis. "One minute she barely even knows he exist and the next the two of them are Prom dates. I don't get it."

"Well, he is easy to get along with," Draculaura said.

"That is true," Cleo agreed with a flippant wave of her hand.

Raven thought about it, something one of them said was nagging at her brain. Suddenly she remembered. "Maybe it has to do with whatever he was looking for in the storage room?"

"What do you mean?" Frankie asked, suspicion lighting her eyes.

"The only reason he found me when the mirror sent me to your world was because he was looking for something in the storerooms. Now that I think about it, he never said what he was looking for. But I know he found it, because I was there when he did."

Raven tapped her pen against her lip in thought. "It was a small box with a weird inscription. I remember because it almost hit me on the head when I was trying to find my way out of the room. He was really happy to find it, but I don't know what was in it."

The ghouls were silent as they contemplated what it could be.

"I guess I'll just have to have a talk with him after his detention is over."

"That reminds me. I have to go soon. I promised Dexter I'd help get him get out early, then we're going out to eat. I have to get ready. Will you ghouls be okay on your own?"

"I'm sure we can figure out our thronework on our own. Go get ready for your date." Frankie said, shooing Raven away.

"Alright, but if you need anything, Apple or any of the other girls would be happy to help while I'm gone."

EA

The sun was beginning to lower in the sky, just beginning to paint the horizon pink, as Milton Grimm watched the students outside hurrying back and forth. His eyes zeroed in on two in particular who were making their way towards Bookend.

Dexter should have still been shoveling out old hay from the animal stalls, but somehow the boy had gotten the entire stables sparkling clean in just an hour. Grimm narrowed his eyes on Raven as Dexter linked his arm with hers.

He had a sneaking suspicion as to how the young prince accomplished such a feat. Once upon a time he would have seen such a blatant cheat as a good sign. Raven's willingness to use magic to break the rules for her own benefit should have made him happy.

But not in this case. Not under these circumstances.

The couple left the school grounds and he lost sight of them. A Charming and a Queen going on a date. Whoever heard of such a thing.

No matter, he thought, soon it would all be over. Soon he would get this story back on track. Raven had only helped Dexter finish his detention. The one Grimm needed was still safely ensconced in the library, sorting books. Alone.

Grimm smiled as he turned from the window and made his way out of his office. Hopefully, by tomorrow morning he'd have everything he needed to ensure that the Snow White tale would have it's villain.

He whistled joyfully as he walked down the hall.

EA

Apple tried to focus on her thronework, if for no other reason than to distract herself from her own tormented thoughts.

Everything was coming undone. Was it possible to unwrite a story? Because she felt like that was what was happening.

She stared down at the paper in front of her, her answer to the question (smile and wave) just seemed so empty, so fake. She used to love Kingdom Management, but lately she was beginning to feel like the class wasn't being taught seriously.

She blamed all this rebel nonsense for putting such ideas in her head. Her own mother solved disputes with a disapproving frown, followed by a cloying smile when the fighting stopped just to make the frown go away, so she knew that was the right answer.

It's just that a niggling little doubt that the only reason it worked was because of some kind of mind control magic was present in the back of Apple's mind. Or worse, it didn't work and the people only pretended it did to please the royal families. She wasn't sure which idea bothered her more.

She scribbled out her answer with several vicious strokes of her pen before crumpling the paper up and throwing it across the room with a frustrated cry. The paper ball sailed through the air for about two feet then fell the ground with rustle near the foot of her bed. It didn't even make it halfway to the wall she was aiming at.

Sometimes Apple wished she had magic powers. Raven would have torched the page, which seemed much more fulfilling than that pathetic throw had been.

Apple let her head flop forward onto her desk with groaning sigh. It was so unfair.

A knock on the door brought her back up from her despair, if only temporarily, and she really hoped it was Briar coming to cheer her up. She hadn't been able to spend much time with her fairy best friend forever after lately.

Opening the door, however, turned out to bring more disappointment. That girl from the other world stood on the other side, a notebook in one hand, the other hand poised on her hip jauntily.

"Do you mind if come in? I just wanted to drop off Raven's notes, then I'll be gone." Cleo said. She held up the notebook for emphasis.

Apple felt her smile drop with a pout as she stepped aside to let the girl in. Cleo glanced around the room with an air of judgement, eyes sweeping over every aspect of both halves.

"I'm sensing a theme. Fruit basket meets Poe. How interesting. Well, I can't say I'm particular to either one. Though I do like that fainting couch, I have one similar at home. Personally I think teal would go so much better with that shade of gold than red."

"You can leave the notes on Raven's desk," Apple said, ignoring everything else and pointing to Raven's side of the room. She tried to not to stomp her way back to her side, but was finding it difficult to control her feet tonight.

Cleo gave her a look that was part haughty disdain and part curiosity. Apple wondered if this was what circus sideshow attractions felt like. She didn't really like it. She humphed and made it a point to turn away.

"Oh my ghoul, what is your problem? I'm trying to be nice here and that's how you treat me," Cleo said in response.

"How is coming into my room and ridiculing my things being nice?" Apple couldn't believe the nerve of it all.

"I said I had one similar, did I not? Obviously that was a compliment on your taste in decor. If I have one, it must be fashionable."

"You complained about the color of the cushions. And snubbed everything else."

Cleo frowned at her. "I said I wasn't particular to any of it because, let's face it, red isn't really my color. Neither is dark purple. I'm more a gold and teal kind of ghoul. Though most colors do look stunning on me regardless." She primped herself in front of Raven's vanity mirror. "I bring out the best in almost everything, except red. Red just doesn't do it for me."

"Are you sure you're not an evil queen. You'd fit right in with them."

"Well, I am royalty. I was suppose to one day rule, but things change." Cleo dropped onto the desk chair with a sigh and dismissive wave of her hand.

Apple hunched into herself at that. "How can you say that so calmly? If you really were suppose to be a ruler, how can you be so casual about your destiny being taken from you?"

"My destiny? My dear, destiny is part chance and part what you make of it. I still rule the halls of Monster High, beloved by the students. The past is past, nothing can be done about that now, so why focus on it. I prefer to look forward, not back."

"But, to be a queen was your destiny. Wasn't it? What could be worth looking forward to after losing that?"

"A queen, pish. I am the daughter of a pharaoh, ruler of all the lands of Egypt. Not a mere queen. I would have been worshiped as a god."

"It's impossible to talk to you. Why couldn't it have Briar at the door?"

"Briar? The young lady that sleeps all the time. She is in the common room, talking to Holly about a book." Cleo leaned back and thought for a moment. "Actually, pretty much everyone except you and Raven are down there. If you want your friend, you'll have to go be sociable."

Apple narrowed her eyes. She was beginning to think this visit didn't have anything to do with giving back notes.

She felt her eyebrows furrow, something her mother had told her not to do because it could cause premature wrinkles. Totally unbecoming of Snow White. She fought to smooth it out.

"Your world doesn't have destiny, but it does have stories. How is that possible?"

"It's simple. We all live out our own stories everyday. It unfolds before us, exactly as we make it."

Apple wasn't convinced. "But how can you stand the uncertainty of it all? Aren't you afraid?" She threw her arms into the air. Without a script to follow anything could happen that they weren't prepared for. It sounded so scary.

"Of course some things worry me. Even with a story to follow, there's going to be worry. But fear? No. The worst part of my story is over. It came unexpectedly and brought sorrow and uncertainty with it, true, but overcoming it makes everything that happened after so much more rewarding."

"So you do follow destiny? You've already lived your story? You're living your happily ever after now." Apple was getting so confused now.

"Well I wouldn't say lived." Cleo leaned back in the chair slightly and looked thoughtful. "More like I finished one chapter and moved onto the next. But living is for the living and I've haven't had a pulse in so long, I don't remember what it feels like to have one."

Apple gulped. She had known the girl before her was a Monster. Logically she had understood that she wasn't alive, but hearing it mentioned in such a blase manner? Well, that was a bit disconcerting.

Raven had said Cleo's story was five thousand years long. Apple had kind of thought she was joking.

"What exactly is your story?" She asked tentatively, not quite sure that she wanted to know all the gory details. But Apple's own story wasn't going to be walk in the park either, she suppose. She hadn't ever really thought too hard about certain parts of it. Her ribs twinged slightly at the thought of being crushed by a corset, but she ignored the feeling.

Cleo gave her a shrewd look, deciding whether or not the girl in front of her could handle it. Finally she stood and made her way over to Apple's side of the room and perched gently on the bed. She didn't seem to weight much, barely making a dent in the plush comforter. Apple supposed that having all your internal organs atrophied to nothing would make you lighter.

"I was born in Egypt, a great kingdom, vast and powerful. My father was the pharaoh, as I mentioned before, someone respected and obeyed above all others. I was well loved and respected as well. My subjects rejoiced at my mere presence above them. You should have seen it, it was spectacular. A majestic, sprawling city. The capitol of commerce and trade as well as the nation on a whole. All of it laid out before our palace.

"I had servants for my servants." Cleo smiled and her eyes seemed to lose focus, as though she was looking back through the ages and seeing everything unfold before her as she spoke. Perhaps she was.

"Of course your people loved you. You were their princess." Apple said, hoping to bring her back from her drifting thoughts. This was one thing the two of them had in common, at least. Being loved by their people.

"It was for so much more. Every day, I went out into the city and spoke with them. I learned about them so I would better understand how the city worked and what it needed. I made friends with merchants and dealers and craftsmen. Sometimes, I'd even sneak out to learn how things were made. My favorite was the perfumes and oils we used. The masters weren't suppose to let me do any of it, but what Father didn't know never hurt any of them. Mother even would wear some of the scents I had made to dinner without anyone being the wiser save for myself.

"There's something satisfying about a job well done, especially one you love. It really was a charmed life. But I guess dynasties weren't meant to last forever. There was coup, one minute I was sleeping peacefully, the next the guards are dragging me down to what was suppose to be safety."

Apple gulped and leaned forward. She was listening with everything she had. She had never heard a story like this before. The idea that a kingdoms people would ever throw out the ruling class was a foreign one to Ever After. That was, after all, the villains job, not theirs.

"My father, sister, and I were told by my uncle that the palace was being attacked. We were lead to a room in the lowest levels of the palace and the next thing I remember is waking, in a never ending darkness. I don't know how long we were down there, but nothing we did drew attention for the longest time. Eventually we were found.

"But when we reemerged into the light, nothing was the same."

Apple bit her lip and prompted her to continue. "How so?"

"The great city was gone, every garden and building. Every street and stream, consumed by a never ending wasteland of sand. All my friends and servants, even my mother, long since turned to dust and bones. The world had completely changed while we were stuck in an enchanted sleep that eventually turned into an enchanted death.

"Back home I'm barely bones and leather. Still beautiful and enchanting, but a corpse none the less. I can't feel temperature, I don't know hunger. I can't actually feel the coolness of my dear Deuce's skin when he takes my hand and I eat for the simple pleasure of the act. But if I could go back and stop it I wouldn't."

"There's so many wonderful things I'd have never experienced. I'd have never met Deuce, or gone to a maul, or gotten to use a credit card, or even seen as much of the world as I have. I'd never have gotten to go on adventures or have my picture taken. There are so many thing about this day and age that are enough to get a ghouls blood pumping with excitement. Or it would if mine hadn't all decayed by this point."

Cleo looked over at Apple to see tears running down the princess' cheeks. Apple sniffled. "Is that why you don't want a destiny. So your children won't have to go through that?"

"Oh heaven's no! I don't think I can even have children of my own. I'm pretty sure all that plumbing has completely disintegrated." Cleo waved her hand in a dismissive gesture, completely unconcerned by the idea. "Even if that's not the case, it's not because it's sad or long that I wouldn't want anyone to relive my story."

She leaned in close to Apple as a hard and determined spark lite in her eyes.

"It's because it's mine. It's mine and mine alone and that is what makes it special. The story would lose impact if just anyone could have it. All the struggles to learn new language, a new way of life. That's all mine. It's a unique experience to me and I'm made stronger for having to overcome my obstacles as I did. Not because a story said I would or gave me a play by play, but because I found the solutions on my own. I fought to be who I am now of my own volition.

"It's my unlife and no one else's."

"But, that sounds so, so..." Apple trailed off, trying to find a tactful way to say what she was thinking.

"Selfish," Cleo said for her. "Well of course it is. All good stories happen because somebody wants something for themselves. But the best protagonists are the ones who aren't afraid to take it, the ones who act instead of just reacting. I'll take the unlife I was given and then some. I'll forge my own happiness and Ra save anyone who tries to stop me. I was meant for greatness, Apple, and I won't stop until I've achieved it. And then I'll probably keep going anyway."

"But how can you be so optimistic about it? You have no idea what's going to happen. Maybe you'll never find the greatness you want."

"I realized something many years ago, sometime after my family was released from our prison. My uncle turned the people against us. He wanted what we had and he took it because we believed in the script that had been laid before us by my ancestors. Be worshiped and adored, pass on the throne to the next in line and repeat without earning it. We were complacent, and completely unprepared to deal with any upset to our lives. In death, we were given a second chance to be something more. So I'm going to take it. No matter where it leads me."

"You can be something more too. You could write your own story, something better than your mother's. A story that is all yours, and no one else's. Or you can be complacent and take the scraps of someone else's life for yourself. Be remembered for their deeds and not your own. It's your choice." Cleo laughed a little at that. "Yes, thinking about it, I do believe it's always been your choice, whether you knew or not." Then she got up and left.

Whether she knew it or not? Apple stared down at her own hands as she contemplated everything. She had chosen to follow her mother's story to the letter the day she fell down that well, because it was safe. It was known and laid out before her. She wouldn't have to wonder or question or second guess if she was making the right decisions or not. There was no unknown factor to fear.

Because she wasn't strong and didn't know how to be.

She wasn't even sure if she wanted to be. She lived her life in fear of the unknown variables, but Raven's decision to tear out her page from the story book of legends had set Apple on a path that still so new there were no tracks to follow. There were signs pointing the right way.

Her life wasn't ruled by her destiny. It was ruled by fear.

It had been for so long she had grown used to it, to the point she had stopped recognizing it for what it was. And now she didn't know how to live differently.

EA

Raven did a little twirl as she slipped into her room, being careful to be quiet. The lights were low and the room silent. She didn't want to wake Apple if the princess was asleep. Sure enough, Apple was curled up in her bed, her covers drawn over her head.

The night had been one of the best she had had in a long time. She had magicked away all the muck in the stables that Dexter hadn't gotten to yet and then waited while he cleaned up. He surprised her with a box of her favorite chocolates and then bowing to her before offering his arm.

They had walked arm in arm to the gates where a horse drawn carriage had been waiting to take them to Bookend's highest rated restaurant. Being with a Charming prince meant she could have whatever she wanted, but the idea of taking advantage hadn't set well with her, so she ordered a mid priced chicken dish and salad.

Dexter had ordered them each a glass of wine, a red she couldn't remember the name of. They had been serenaded and waited on by smiling servers as they sat on the outdoor veranda with the sun setting majestically in the background.

Conversation had started slightly awkward, but quickly loosened up. He asked her about her family and home, they talked about his huge family and the craziness that happened whenever the whole lot was together.

Eventually, their conversation turned to destiny, sort of, and her feelings on Monster High, kind of. Dexter admitted that he knew some of his family did things off script in secret, but wouldn't name names. Raven admitted that she had considered sneaking into Headmistress Bloodgood's office and smashing the mirror when she heard it was up and running again.

She may have also admitted that she didn't because she had missed him. He may have confessed that he had spent most of the week staying awake until he passed out from exhaustion while trying to find her. And that he had threatened to beat Humphrey to a pulp when the technophile was unable to trace where the mirror had dumped her.

She had mixed feelings about that, but at the forefront of her emotions was giddiness that Dexter was that worried about her. Though perhaps she'd have to talk to him in the future about not bodily harming his own friends, it wasn't like poor Humphrey had been the one to send her to Monster High.

Dinner ended with a stroll through the park under the stars while eating ice cream cones and fairies lighting their path. The end of the path lead to a huge fountain that had been enchanted to change the waters color constantly.

As she watched the colors drift from green to blue to purple, Dexter had handed her small box with a gorgeous silver necklace in it. An amethyst heart with silver wings.

Her knees had given out her and she had been forced to sit on the fountain edge lest she tumble to the pavement when he held it out to her and asked if she would go to the ball with him on Saturday.

She had never felt more like a storybook princess before in her life. It was a long way to go from being ostracized as the next Evil Queen to being called a Lady who it was an honor to be with.

Her magic had responded by causing fireworks to explode above them as joy sorted out her brain. If this was what it was like to be a princess then she finally understood why Apple was so desperate to be Snow White.

Raven changed into her pajamas, humming a melody under her breath as flopped onto her bed. Unknown to her, Apple listened, unmoving and lost. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks as she questioned everything she had known since she was child.

Raven slept, dreaming of dances and shy smiling princes. Apple stared into the darkness, thinking about everything that had happened tonight. Both of their minds were on the same thing, a different life. One were children weren't condemned to their parents shadows.

EA

Apple wasn't the only one having trouble sleeping. Deuce stared up at the ceiling, listening to nothing and for something. After what seemed forever, he shifted onto his side, facing the other side of the room.

The other half of the room was a strange combination of organized chaos, even in the short amount of time here the other occupant had made their mark. There books stacked neatly by size on the desk and clothes thrown haphazardly on the floor and back of the chair. A pen had melted into the desktop, while the thronework papers had the most precise and clear handwriting Deuce had ever seen.

The bed looked like someone had started to make it, but then got bored halfway through and wandered off. Which was entirely likely, since his roommates transformations had become erratic as of late.

The bed was also why he couldn't sleep. Or rather, who wasn't in it. Neither Jackson nor Holt had shown up since leaving for detention. It was well past curfew now. He couldn't still be in the library sorting books, could he? There had to be a rule about ending detention if it went on past lights out, right?

Deuce frowned as time stretched on and no exhausted half human stumbled through the door. He really hoped that all that happened was Holt taking over and wandering off to find a party somewhere, but a sour feeling in his gut told him something had gone very wrong.

EA

Things were finally starting to go right. Milton Grimm, esteemed headmaster of Ever After High, charged with the honor of seeing the students follow in their parents footsteps, truly smiled for the first time in months.

In front of him a vile shimmered with the magic he poured into it. The red liquid bubbled and churned, the color fading to clear as he distilled it down to the elements he wanted.

He watched happily, all the while aware that the only thing keeping him from being beat to death or turned into a pile of ash on the floor was the sedative coursing through his captives system. It had been tricky getting the boy out of the library and into his personal lab without being seen, but it would all be worth it.

Next to the table, blue eyes glared with fury at the back of Milton's head as they watched every move he made. Milton was honestly surprised Jekyll wasn't out cold. The sedative should have been strong enough to take out a bridge troll. The boy was definitely stubborn, that was for sure. No wonder Raven had made friends with him so easily.

Milton had no doubt what so ever, that had he not secured the boy to lab table, Jackson would be making things very difficult indeed. And there was still the possibility that he'd transform and fry Milton to a crisp if the sedative wore off early.

He didn't really know what the boy's metabolism was like, but by the looks of things, it worked really fast to clear out unwanted elements.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. I'll let you go as soon as tomorrow's breakfast is done. By then Raven will have unknowingly taken her first step toward her future." Milton looked down at the vile as the blood finally finished distilling down to nothing but the potion. "Hm, actually, maybe I should make more. I'm not sure how effective it'll be once it's watered down in her drink."

He picked up a syringe and turned to the table. Judging by the look on his face and how fast his mouth was moving, Milton was glad there was a silencing charm on the lab table as well. He could only imagine what foul things Jackson was saying right now.

"Oh be still," said Milton as he held down Jackson's arm. "It won't hurt as much if don't struggle. Believe it or not, I don't like hurting you. But the Snow White story needs the Evil Queen. You'll understand someday. Everything I've done, I've done for the sake of the story."

And he plunge the needle into Jackson's arm, drawing out another vile of blood. Just in case, Raven needed more than one dose. After all, according to the book, it was months of taking the formula at it's full strength before the change started to become permanent.

He could be patient though and he'd do whatever it took. Even if that meant the Monsters would be going home one, or two, short.

* * *

Like The Other Side of the Mirror, this will only be three chapters, so next update is last for now. I cut a few things here and there to make the story a bit more concise, but I wanted to leave bits and pieces of the different characters interacting with each other. That is most of this chapter. Mostly the Monsters trying to understand Ever After's way of thinking, some more Dexter/Jackson tension, and I really love the chemistry that happened between Apple and Cleo. I think after everything is said and done, those two stay in contact and have a great friendship.

I dropped the Cerise arc though. It wasn't really necessary, since Raven and Apple's were more than enough. I only left the little blurb of her and Clawdeen having fun here.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch 3

Friday morning saw the students of Ever After High excitedly talking about the ball to be held the next day. The castleteria was a buzz with whispers of who was taking who, what everyone was wearing, and for the Monsters about plans for packing up and getting ready to return home.

It had been a fun week for Frankie and her ghoulfriends, even if they still didn't understand what the big deal was about when it came to the whole following their parents' destiny thing. The new and sometimes strange classes had definitely been interesting to take.

"I am so glad we don't have Professor Rumplestilskin has a teacher at Monster High," Clawdeen said. "It would really bite having to spend four years with the threat of spinning straw into gold for a failed test."

"Damsel in Distressing wasn't nearly as much fun as I thought it would be, but the class on surviving dragon kidnapping was kind of fun. The dragon that was used for the demonstration was so sweet," Draculaura said. "I would take her home with us if she'd fit through the mirror."

"Ugh, don't remind me about that. Mirror travel is the worst. There has got to be a better way to get back to Monster High."

Frankie laughed at that, thinking the same thing. The mirror had been a disorienting ride to say the least. Just as she was about to add her own opinion on it, Deuce and Clawd ran up to their table. Both looked worried and out of breath.

"Have any of you ghouls seen Jackson or Holt this mourning?" Deuce asked. "He never came back to the dorms last night. We just checked the lie-bury and the step-lie-burians said that Headmaster Grimm released him from detention yesterday evening before dinner. We've looked everywhere."

Frankie's eyes widened in concern, "No. We haven't seen him yet. Are you sure he didn't come back last night and didn't just leave early." She really hoped that was case. Maybe he was just finishing up a class project.

"Yeah, I'm positive," Deuce said.

The table went silent as they all looked to each other for reasurance and found none.

EA

The headmaster had left sometime ago, but hadn't released him from the restraint pinning his arms to his sides and his head down.

But whatever the retched man had hit him with that had made everything spin had worn off completely and he could think a bit more clearly. Panic was still clouding his better judgement as he tried to worm the little vial out of his pocket.

After all, if he was calm, he'd probably be able to come up with a better idea, but he didn't really have much time. He had to get out and warn Raven about the the headmaster's plan. There was no telling what that potion would do to her.

Not only was it going to be mixed with some random drink, some of which had magic in them, but it wasn't the original. It was whatever altered version ran through his own blood. Blood that wasn't entirely human. It was unstable, that was all he knew from his own experiments with it.

He needed out of these restraints and out of this room right now.

If you know what's going on, why don't you make your useful and go tell Maddie?

 _That's not how this works. I told you that the very first day._

Damnit, why couldn't you be a ghost or invisible person who was tangible? At least then you could get me out of here instead of annoying me.

 _Hey, just because you're in a tight spot, doesn't mean I can just skip to the next part. Just try to ignore me. I have to narrate this part. It's important for the readers to know what is happening so they aren't confused._

His response was to say something that the narrator could not in good conscience repeat to the reader, but suffice it to say, she was very put out by it.

He grumbled and the vial finally dropped into the palm of his hand. But now how to get it in his system. Obviously, he couldn't drink it like this.

He twisted his head as much as he could and looked at the vial. It wasn't the one he had gotten from the storage room at Monster High. No, that was safely at home with his parents. But he had sythesized a small amount for himself without telling anyone. For his own purposes.

He had put it in his pocket and forgotten it was there when everyone made their quick plans to follow Raven to Ever After High. It was a good thing the headmaster hadn't found it. It was also a good thing it hadn't broken.

Because now he was going to break it.

It was the only way to get it in his system given his current predictament.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, trying not to think about how much this was going to hurt, he pressed the glass into the table with all the strength he could muster.

It shattered under the pressure, glass shards slicing into his palm, the Hyde potion spilling over the table, soaking into the leg of his pants and puddling under his hand. It mixed with his blood, seeping into him and cycling through his veins. He felt it slowly consume him, his thoughts went into overdrive, his heartbeat sped up, he could feel the slight burn like his usual transformation, but it wasn't painful.

What happened next however, was nothing like his usual transformations at all.

He knew who he was still, but also that he was someone else now. _Everything_ that had happened up to this moment was still at the forefront of his thoughts and the panic turned to rage.

How dare that fucker do this! Holt Hyde twisted and turned sharply and so hard the table tipped from side to side. Finally crashing to the floor and damaging the restraints enough that he was able to free one hand.

That was all he needed. Once out of the straps holding him down he charged the door, slamming his shoulder into it with all he had. A magic field repelled him away, knocking him to the ground. He growled and slammed his fist into it, leaving a bloody smear behind, but otherwise not getting through.

From the fog of anger a thought came to him.

He stilled and listened, and a devious smile spread over his face. It was an idea that he wouldn't have normally had the clearheadedness to think of in this situation, but this wasn't a normal transformation.

Hey, look, I know we got off on the wrong, what is it, page? Yeah, we got off on the wrong page. But you like a happy ending right? If I don't get out of here and stop that idiot no one is going to have a happily ever after again, because once Raven takes that potions she'll destroy this world. So why don't you do me a solid and tell a certain kitty cat that I know I great way for her to cause some mayhem.

 _Well, I suppose I could do that. I mean, it's not like I'd be giving the ending away. Yeah, okay, but just this once._

EA

 **Hmm, mayhem you say. Well now, how can I say no to that?**

EA

Kitty wasn't sure exactly how switching Raven's drink with one of the Royals was going to cause mayhem, but it wasn't like it took a lot of effort to do so. If nothing came of it except some minor grumbling, then so be it.

And she had gotten to see for herself that Headmaster Grimm had a very private lab with all kinds of stuff in it that she could _play_ with later.

She looked around the room, trying to pick a victim. Holt was on his way, she had opened the door for him, but the room was a long way from the castleteria. She wasn't going to wait for him.

Her eyes finally fell on the perfect victim and a smile was all that was left of her as she vanished herself over to Raven. It was nothing to grab her drink and switch it out. Then she vanished herself away to the upper floor and watched from a safe distance. Holt hadn't told her what this would do, only that it wasn't a normal drink and the headmaster had something to do with it.

Curiousity was a specialty of cats and Cheshire's had it in abundance. She held her breath as Dexter Charming picked up his drink and took a long swallow.

She hoped this would be good.

EA

Dexter frowned down at his drink. Whatever was in the cup hadn't been what he had meant to fill it with, that was for sure. There was this horrible, bitter taste and it was kind of making him really mad.

He sent the drink a disapproving glare and pushed it away. His skin felt tingling, and vision blurred slightly. Next to him Daring was prattling on and on about his usual nonsense to a gaggle of dumb broads. Dexter removed his glasses and gently put them down on the table.

"And that is how I saved what would have been a truly tragic bad hair day. It always pays to have a mirror on hand. Why if I hadn't shown that poor sod what a mess he was, we would have had to endure such a horrible sight all day long. Though he still wasn't nearly as handsome as I," Daring said. The girls oohed and aahed. "But that can't be helped. There's no way to fix a case of "not being Daring Charming" am I right, brother, or am I right?"

Daring nudged Dexter in the ribs. What a twat.

An smirk spread over Dexter's face as he lifted his head, opening his eyes he looked right at the girls surround Daring.

"Oh I don't know, a few bricks to the head should be good enough to drag anyone down to your level. Brother."

There had been so many times in the past that Dexter had thought those words, but he'd never had the courage to give them voice before. It felt good saying them, freeing.

Daring nodded at first, then did a double take. "Excuse me. I think you meant raise them up to my level. Obviously," he said. "Silly Dexter, always kidding around."

"Oh no, I meant exactly what I said. But I suppose a narcissistic baboon like you might think otherwise, isn't that right girls?"

"Oh yes, Dexter. Whatever you say," the young damsels and princess' chorused in rapt adoration and absolute obedience. Daring stared at them wide eyed, baffled by the sudden turn around and completely missing the creepy, glazed over looks in their eyes.

Dexter let his smirk spread even farther. Oh this was so much fun. Why hadn't he done this sooner. Watching his idiot of an older brother flounder was like a dream come true. The feeling of power that was steadily growing in his chest snaked through his veins, filling him with confidence.

The more it consumed him the darker his thoughts became. No, that wasn't right. It wasn't that they were becoming darker, they had always been dark. It was just that he had kept them tightly under lock and key in a desperate attempt to be the second perfect son he was expected to be.

Well, no more of that. Why should he be pushed to the side for Daring. Daring was a blowhard who couldn't see past his own reflection. He was a shit hero, but Dexter was the only one who seemed to notice.

"Dexter? Girls? What's going on? Is this some kind of dark magic?" Daring was looking worried, then suddenly his face lite up like he had just found the answer to the universe. "Oh I get it. You're all playing a joke on me. Well, ha ha, good one. You almost had me, but there's no way my adoring fans would ever turn away from me." He struck a pose and flashed his best Charming smile. His teeth glinted in the morning sun light.

Not a single girl at the table noticed, they were too busy staring dreamily into Dexter's eyes.

Dexter might have been amused by all of it, if Daring's inflated ego and careless disregard wasn't so enraging to deal with. The disdain that had bubbled to the surface of his thoughts blazed across his brain and brought with it anger and resentment.

The emotions had been building pressure and now the seal was broken.

"Sorry, what was that? I'm afraid I don't understand Jackass," Dexter said, venom dripping from the words.

Daring went red in the face, "You're taking this joke too far now, brother. It's over."

"The only joke around here is you," Dexter said, prodding Daring in the chest none too gently. "Did you honestly think anyone here wasn't going to figure out that you are a useless hack. You're no Prince Charming, just a sad little pauper with delusions of grandeur, too full of yourself to even notice if someone needed your help."

Dexter took advantage of Daring's stunned stillness to lean in close. "And here's a little secret. Darling can run circles around you in any arena, by pass you in any hero event and she does it all without expecting a reward. Our little sister is a better hero than you could ever hope to be. Maybe you should be the one locked in a tower waiting to be rescued. After all, you might be a shitty Prince Charming, but you'd make for a great Beast."

Daring's jaw dropped. In fact, the entire castleteria went so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Dexter? What is the meaning of this, this sudden bismerchment of my person?" Daring stood, taking a step back, one hand clutching dramatically at his chest.

Dexter looked less then impressed by his brother's antics. As the brown slowly bled from his hair, turning it a striking platinum blonde, he leveled Daring with a half-lidded glare.

"Oh, that's a big word. Careful, Brother, we wouldn't want you using up your limited brain capacity for the year. But to answer your question, I've grown tired of your baseless arrogance and your inane prattle." Dexter eyes flashed a disturbing red color right as he spoke, his skin taking on a lightly tanned color.

"I'll have you know my arrogance is anything but baseless!" Daring said, drawing his sword from the bench were he had left it. He pointed the business end at Dexter, who gave a dismissive snort in acknowledgement but seemed unconcerned. "Why don't you back up your words, little brother. And we shall see which of us is truly worthy of the Charming name."

Dexter smirked at the girls surrounding him, stretching out his arms over his head as they sighed dramatically, still enthralled by his eyes.

"If that's what you want," he told Daring and in a move swifter and stronger than anything he had ever done before, he had moved from his seat, sidestepped his brother and wretched the sword from his hand. A quick kick to the backside sent Daring stumbling forward. The rest of the students gasped in surprise.

Daring regained his balance a second before his forehead collided with the table. Turning back around he found himself staring down the blade of his own sword. His eyes followed the length of the blade all the way up only to find himself looking at a twisted version of his own brother.

Dexter's lips were quirked up into a malevolent smile, his eyes burned red with maliciousness. This was not the brother Daring knew.

"Oh no," he said just as Dexter raised the blade for a killing blow.

"Dexter! No, don't!" Raven's voice rang out in the terrified silence. "This isn't you!" She ran forward, putting herself between Daring and the sword.

"Sorry, Babe, but Daring's book is about to close."

"Dexter, I don't know what's happening to you, but if you just put the sword down before you do something you'll regret, then we can fix this."

"Maybe I don't want to fix it," Dexter said. "Maybe I like being able to speak my mind for once."

Raven opened her mouth to reply when Daring shoved her out of the way and slammed himself shoulder first into Dexter's stomach, knocking him back several paces.

Dexter held his ground, slamming the hilt of the sword into the space between Daring's shoulder blades with enough force to drop him.

"Oh goody, there's still a little spark left in you. That just makes this more fun for me." Dexter brought a knee up into Daring's jaw, just as the older boy started to go down.

Daring flopped back and held the sore spot, his eyes watering as pain ran across his jawline. He barely managed to avoid the next blow, rolling to the side as the castleteria erupted into frantic cries and students running into the halls in a blind panic.

Some students ducked under tables and overturned benches as the exit clogged with bodies.

Daring barely managed to escape blow after blow, the sword just inches from flesh and getting closer to it's target with every swing. His breath came in heaves and sweat dripped from his brow as he struggled to keep Dexter from ending him. The blade took a lock of hair as it's reward when he didn't move fast enough. It sliced with expert ease through shirt and Letterman's jacket, leaving a thin line across his chest that beaded with blood, but wasn't very deep.

He found himself backed into a corner, once more Dexter raised the sword, blood-lust in his eyes. Daring saw the blade descend in slow motion, his life flashed before his closed eyes as he prepared to die.

The sound of metal striking metal rang throughout the hall. Daring opened his eyes to see his sister's back. Her sword clashing with Dexter's.

"Run! Hurry!" Darling shouted at him. Daring wasted no time in obeying her orders, scurrying to hide behind an table some other students had overturned as a blockade.

"Why did you stop me?" Dexter asked her, his faced contorted in anger. "You hate having to listen to Mom and Dad drone on about how great he is too. With him gone, they'll be forced to notice us."

"This isn't what you really want, Dexter. I know the real you, you'd never do this of your own free will."

Dexter snorted. "Is that what you think? Then I guess you don't know the real me any better than the rest of them. If you won't stay out of the way, then you're part of the problem."

Darling parried the blow just in time. The two of them danced across the room, swords clashing, leaping over and onto tables. Neither one had felt this level of exhilaration before. They kicked out bowls and plates to distract their opponents, they fought for higher ground and tried to take advantage of every weak spot.

All the while Raven and Apple tried to herd the students to safety and above Kitty watched with rapt attention. This hadn't been what she had had in mind when she switched the drinks. A bit of chaos was fun, but some of her friends were in real danger and that was no laughing matter.

Darling was starting to gain the advantage, whatever had happened had heightened her twin's reflexes and strength, but she had experience on her side, when the doors burst open and the headmaster stormed into the room.

"What is going on in here!?" His bellow stopped both in their tracks. "And who the hell are you?" He pointed at the changed Dexter. This only seemed to draw the boy's wrath to a new target.

"It figures you wouldn't recognize me. You've never paid attention to anyone you haven't hand picked to be in the Snow White tale."

Students hiding behind tables peeked over the edges and whispered conspiratorially at each other. That was quite the accusation after all. The Headmaster was suppose to protect their stories, but he wasn't suppose to decide who did what.

Headmaster Grimm turned white, then red, a vein on his forehead throbbed. "How dare you!"

"Oh stuff it, you wind bag. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you picked and chose who you wanted in which roles. Not after we found out the Story Book of Legends was a fake. You're the only one with access to it, so you would have to have been the one to control the fake."

"I demand someone tell me what's going on right this minute! Who is this insolent boy!"

Behind Dexter, Darling made wild motions to the headmaster, desperately trying to warn him to not push things. She didn't know what was going on with her brother any more then the headmaster, but she did know attracting this version of Dexter's ire would not end well. She didn't think she could put him down, not her own twin. The thought alone made her stomach churn.

Headmaster Grimm either ignored her, a plausibility given his interest in her, or he didn't notice her. "Name yourself and cease this nonsense at once."

Dexter's grip on the sword tightened as his seemingly boundless anger ignited. So did the sword for that matter. Flames licked the edge of the blade, roaring to life from nothing.

"Dexter, he didn't mean it," Raven shouted. She was holding a magical shield around several cowering students who had managed to box themselves in a corner. "Headmaster, tell him you didn't mean it, for your own good."

Instead the headmaster turned from Raven to Dexter, the color draining rapidly from his face as the boy stepped menacingly toward him. Darling grabbed onto Dexter's arm in an attempt to slow him down.

"That can't be. You can't be Dexter. How could this have...no," Grimm said, stepping back in horror. "No, Raven was suppose to drink it, not you! How could this have happened?"

Dexter stopped. Raven stopped. Darling let go of her brother's arm, jaw dropping. Every student held their breath.

What had the headmaster done?

"What was my little song bird suppose to drink?" Dexter was very suddenly right up in Grimm's face. Fury was radiating off him, the flames on his sword raged.

"The Hyde Formula," a voice said, quite calmly given the circumstances. In the door way stood Holt, leaning casually against the frame. He was examining his hand, pulling blood soaked shards of glass from it and nonchalantly flinging them to the floor.

"You tried to drug Raven!"

The headmaster hit the floor with the force of the punch, somehow just managing to avoid being burned as well. Not that it mattered. Dexter was on him, raining blow after blow in a blind fury.

"Stop it!" Raven dropped the shield around the students and instead directed her magic to pulling Dexter off the headmaster. The boy flailed wildly, growling and swearing death to the older man. The headmaster was curled in a ball, also held by Raven's magic.

"Aw, why'd ya stop him?" Holt asked. "Clearly lover boy has some issues he needs to work out. And what better way than to beat the cause of those issues into a bloody mess? Just so long as he saves some for me. I don't appreciate being kidnapped, having my blood drained to be used against a friend and then being left to rot in a cage."

"Don't let him come near me!" Grimm cowered where he was being held to the floor. "How did you even get out?"

Holt sauntered over and squatted down to look Grimm in the eye, for the first time Grimm noticed that the boy wasn't alone. His monster friends and Giles, as well as several other faculty members, were also standing in the doorway.

Giles in particular held a look of immense disappointment. As Milton looked to him for help, the younger brother turned away. He had gone too far this time. Giles walked away.

"You see," said Holt, "As it turns out, no matter which me is in control, I'm always awesome. I had a little something to give me a boost in my pocket. And even the wimpy me has the guts to do what needs doing when push comes to shove." He held up his shredded palm and gave a mockery of a wave. "The original stuff works pretty fast when it goes directly into the blood. Comes with a fun surprise too." He leaned in and whispered. "I remember everything."

"Holt, don't do anything rash," Raven said. Her tone was all business. The headmaster had tried to do something horrible to her and Dexter was already paying the price for it. Part of her wanted to see the headmaster get immediate punishment and she'd be lying if she said she couldn't have pulled Dexter away from the man sooner.

But she also didn't want vengence. She wanted justice. Justice wouldn't be served by hurting the headmaster.

Frankie walked up to Holt and put a hand on his shoulder. She smiled to Raven to reassure she had this under control.

"Holt, why don't we get that hand looked at before you get an infection," Frankie said. "Giles Grimm has gone to get the authorities and let the rest of the staff know what's going on. They'll take care of this. You wouldn't want to make more trouble for Raven. She has her hands full with these two."

Holt let the tension in his body drain. "Yeah, you're right. Mom would be pissed if I fried a teacher, no matter if he is a scum bag. He's not worth a scolding from Mama Hyde."

He stood and looked at Dexter, still struggling to escape from Raven's magic, murder in his now red eyes.

"Hey," he said to Raven. "There's probably still time before it bonds completely to his molecular structure. If you work fast, you should be able to purge it from his system. He won't end up like my family, uncontrollably flipping back and forth. Never quite whole, only half of themselves present at any given time."

"But how do I do that?" Raven asked, looking worriedly at Dexter.

"You don't. Just let me be. I like this way better than the push over I was before," Dexter snarled. "Come on, babe. Don't you want someone who can protect you. I'm way more powerful this way."

"You're out of control this way." Raven said. Holt whispered in her ear before allowing Frankie to lead him out of the castleteria. Raven looked around at the few people remaining and blushed.

She couldn't really do that in front of everyone. Could she? What if it didn't work?

"Come on little chickadee, let me end him. Then he can never hurt you again. Isn't that what a Prince Charming is suppose to do? Save his princess from the evil trying to hurt her?" Dexter wheedled, an undercurrent of danger in his every word.

Raven wavered a bit. A heady cloud of desire, specifically desire to please Dexter, tried to take root in her mind as she looked into his eyes. With a shake of her head, she looked back at the headmaster, still stuck to the floor by her magic, his eyes pleading with her for mercy.

"You're right, if I let you go, he couldn't hurt me anymore. But then I'd have to live with knowing that I let something terrible happen to someone else. Worse, you'd have to live with it." She walked up to Dexter, setting him down but keeping him contained. "And I know the real, complete you would be devastated that you did something so cruel."

"I want the real Dexter in my story. Not just a part of him," she said. She took his face in her hands and smiled sadly. Then she leaned in and kissed him for all she was worth. If it didn't work, at least she tried.

She pulled away and watched. At first there was no change, then his face paled and he looked about to be sick. She released him just in time for him to drop to his knees and vomit up a dark liquidy mess onto the floor.

With each heave he became more and more the Dexter she knew. His hair darkened and his skin lost the dark tan, his eyes had turned back to the bright blue she was familiar with.

He was left shaking when he finished. Looking up at her, he seemed so confused at first.

"What just happened?" His questioned trailed off as a look of horror crossed his face. Raven winced as she watched. Clearly, he remembered everything that he had done.

"It's okay, it wasn't your fault." She tried to reassure him. "Everyone is going to be okay."

"Oh no, Daring! I tried to kill my own brother," he said, his hands tangling in his hair. "I'm mean, sure he can be annoying sometimes, but I've never wanted to kill him for it."

"Hey, just what is that suppose to mean? Darling, I'm not annoying! Am I?" Daring called from his hiding spot. The last part came out as a pathetic whine.

As Darling halfheartedly consoled one brother, Raven guided the other away from everyone else.

"It'll be okay, we all know it wasn't the real you doing all that," she said as they left the castleteria. "Come on. Let's get you to the infirmary. I want to make sure it's all out of your system.

Dexter stopped, bringing Raven to halt as well. "But it was the real me. Or at least a part of me. That's what Holt said, isn't it. That what ever that stuff in my, or your, drink was, it made it so that one part of you is in control at a time. That means that all that anger I felt is a part of me somewhere, buried deep in my mind."

"Everyone has a little anger in them. That doesn't mean it rules you or is who you really are. It's just a small part of what makes you, you," Raven said. "I accept that part of you, I do. But I also know it's not all that you are. The real Dexter is in control of that anger, not the other way around. This just took away that control, that's all."

She laughed nervously, "I mean, can you imagine what would have happened if I had drank it like the headmaster wanted? That could have gone badly for everyone."

Dexter placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eye. "Raven, you're one of the most well put together people I know. You're open and honest to everyone about who you are. I doubt that even a messed up potion like that could have changed you. Maybe the side it would have brought out would have been an all good side." He smiled at her and something about the way he looked at her made her believe his word as gospel truth. "But, just the same, let's not find out." He added.

She shook her head to clear it, realizing his glasses where still in the castleteria. Strangely, he didn't seem to be having a problem seeing where he was going. Well, she'd bring it up later. They had enough to deal with right now.

EA

Deuce walked back to the mess that was the castleteria. Cleo had left her mirrorphone behind when they had left to look for Jackson and in all the commotion had completely forgotten about it.

So, when she realized it was missing, Deuce had volunteered to go get it. It was that or stay and deal with the meltdown she was about to have and honestly, he didn't think he could handle it calmly after the intense mourning they just had. He needed time to decompress first.

He was somewhat surprised to see he wasn't the only one there. Everyone had been told to go to their dorms if they weren't injured and wait for further instruction after the faculty had reprimanded the headmaster to his quarters.

So it came as a bit of a shock that he found himself staring at the most rule abiding student that he had ever met.

Apple didn't look up at him as he walked over to her. She just continued to stare at something in her hand. As Deuce approached, he saw that it was cup.

"Everyone is becoming a rebel," Apple spoke up, acknowledging his presence, but still not looking at him. "Even Briar doesn't want her destiny. Maybe I am the one who is wrong, but I don't know how to be anything other than Snow White."

Finally she looked up at him, her expression desperate and pleading. "Do you think I could be a rebel too, if I drink it? Would it be better if I didn't care about destiny anymore?"

She held up the wax paper cup, with it's thin plastic lid and stripped bendy straw. It looked so innocent, so unassuming.

But Deuce knew that a nightmare waited inside.

"That won't help you," he gentle pushed her hands down, guiding her to leave the tampered drink on the table. "That will only make everything worse. Trust me. My best friend has to deal with the consequences of his ancestor's mistake everyday of his unlife. And you saw what it did to one of your own. Nothing good comes from trying to force yourself to be someone else."

"But what am I suppose to do? At least if I was turned into a villain I would still have a role to play! Or maybe I just wouldn't care so much that it hurts."

"You do you, Applepie. That's all that anyone wants and that's the only true way to be happy."

"I don't even know who I am without the Snow White story! How can I 'do me', if I don't know who me is?"

Deuce leaned against the table, pushing the tainted cup a bit further away, just to be safe. "The way I see it, that's what High School is for. Figuring out who you are or who you want to be. What are some of the things you like doing that don't require eating or drinking poison?"

"I like helping people."

"See, there's a start. That's something that is a part of you. There are lots of jobs that involve helping people that don't involve evil stepmother's trying to kill you. You could be a cop, or charity worker, or build houses." He listed off suggestions, ticking them off on his fingers one by one.

"On second thought," he said, looking at her not quite over the rim of his shades, "I think you'd make a good teacher."

"A teacher? I've never thought about that. I do like children," Apple said. She nibbled on her bottom lip as she considered it. "Or an advice columnist. I've been told I give very good advice, especially went it comes to solving disputes. A business consultant or defense lawyer."

There was shine coming back to her features that had been missing for a couple of days now. Deuce hadn't paid her much mind before, but he definitely noticed that she had been looking dull now that it was back. A smile pulled at her lips as she began to rattle off all the possibilities she had denied existing until this moment.

"Hey, how about you start your illustrious career is fairytale services by helping me find Cleo's phone, before she summons Anubis on us. I'd rather not deal with a cranky Egyptian death god. Most of them aren't too fond of those of us who are of the snake persuasion."

Apple blinked herself out of her revelry with a perky, "Of course."

As they looked behind upended tables and under spilled breakfast dishes, Apple cleared her throat and with a tone a bit brighter then somber said, "Thank you, for listening. And for helping me see things a bit differently. All the rebels talk about is what they won't do, but your the first person to give me alternatives to do."

Deuce looked over to her from across the room. It sounded to him that none of her friends had tried to approach the issue from an angle that Apple could follow.

"Hey, no problem."

"Maybe if you tried calling her phone, we could follow the ring?" Apple suggested.

"Hey, that's a good idea. You really are good at giving advice and solving problems," he said as he pulled his phone out. "One day, you'll make a great queen."

Cleo's ringtone echoed from three tipped over tables and one pile of benches. It sounded like a new beginning.

AW

A timid knock barely managed to reach the boys' ears as Deuce and Jackson finished packing the last of their stuff. Tomorrow they headed home, but tonight they said their goodbyes to Ever After. The dance had been cancelled due to the upheaval caused by the revelations in the castleteria the other day. Classes too had been suspended, but Apple had suggested that a small going away party for the Monsters should happen.

It was the least they could do, she reasoned, considering how the former headmaster had drugged, kidnapped, and assaulted one of them.

Jackson winced as he unthinkingly grabbed the door handle with his injured hand. The nurses here had magic to fix the majority of the damage, but it was still very tender. The deeper cuts hadn't healed completely either, so a bandage was wrapped tightly around his palm that itched something awful.

"Yes?" he said as he answered the knock. Then, seeing you was on the other side, winced again. "Oh, it's you." He tried to keep his tone neutral.

Dexter looked down at his sneakers. "I wanted to apologize. You know, for being uncharming to you pretty much the entire time."

Jackson stepped back and waved the other boy in. It really was freaky how much they looked alike here; he was glad he didn't have a doppleganger waiting back home too.

Deuce shuffled towards the door, eyeing the two boys nervously. "I'm just going to leave you two to work things out." He slipped out of the room before one or the other could stop him.

"So," Dexter began awkwardly, looking around the room as though hoping to find the right words hiding somewhere among the flotsam and jetsam. With a defeated sigh, he flopped onto Deuce's bed and groaned.

"I don't even know where to begin," he said.

"Yeah, I don't either," Jackson said.

"Why couldn't you have been more, I don't know, weird looking. I think I could have dealt with you better if it didn't feel like I was looking in a fun house mirror."

"Hey," Jackson said, perking up slightly. "I feel the same way. It looks like we finally found something in common."

Dexter laughed, just a tiny chuckle then flopped over to stare up at the ceiling. "Maybe more than that. Or rather, I think I at least understand a few things better than I did before."

"What do you mean?"

"When you guys showed up for the first time, I didn't know what to expect. Raven said she was bringing her new friends with to show them around. I guess I just thought they'd all be girls. And then a copy of me comes stumbling out of the mirror and Raven was always talking about how much you helped her. I guess, I just didn't like the idea that she had a better version of me hanging around her. I'm sorry. I didn't give you a chance. And now I know what's like to really have another version of myself that is an actual threat. Maybe if I hadn't been a jerk, I might have at least known what was happening to me.

"Maybe I could have controlled myself better."

"There's no controlling it," Jackson said, sitting on his own bed. "Raven's a great friend, but I have someone else I'm interested in. And even if I was interested in her, I think she has her heart firmly set on you. If the kiss working the way it did is any indication. Did you get the all clear from the nurse?"

"Yeah," Dexter lifted himself up on his elbows and eyed Jackson, a faraway smile on his face. "Love's kiss is a pretty strong cure around here. Not much stands up to it. I remember, I have you to thank for that too. Raven is one the sweetest girls I know, but I know she wouldn't have been confident in our relationship enough to think of it on her own. I don't know that I would have either, if our positions had been reversed."

Jackson gave a grunt and looked away. "It was only sort of me. Well, I think it was me, but it also wasn't." He waved his hand in a vague circular gesture, not really sure how to vocalize the experience.

"I know, believe me. As of yesterday, I understand better then anyone else in this world."

"It's usually different for me. I don't usually exist as me at all when Holt takes over. This was the first time I've ever been hit full on by the original transformation. I understand why my Great Great Grandfather was addicted to it. It felt so," he trailed off, not sure how to finish the sentence.

"Freeing?"

"Yeah. And scary."

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry, you had to go through that."

"I'm not."

Silence stretched between them. Dexter sat up completely.

"There is something that wanted to ask you though. Do you hear a voice? I mean, I've never heard it before I drank that stuff, but now it kind of sounds like a woman narrating everything we do. But I don't always hear it, just in the castleteria the other day and now here."

...

"Yeah, just try to ignore it."

"I don't know that I can. It's kind of distracting."

"You'll get use to it. Or maybe Maddie can help you with it, if you can understand anything she says."

"So that's Maddie's narrator? I always thought it was her just being Maddie. Like, you know, a Wonderlandian thing."

"Nope, it's real and apparently now we are both mad enough to hear it."

"Oh, it's stopped."

"I'm sure it's only temporary. She can't seem to shut up for long."

 _I can't wait until you are gone._

Both boys' eyes widened, looking around the room suspiciously. As far as finding common ground was concerned there were better things to bond over then shared psychosis, but they'd take what they could get.

EA

The farewell party for the Monsters was on it's way to wrapping up. Raven stepped away from the pulsing music that Melody and Holt had recently turned down to proper background noise. The gentle lull of conversation and dim lights faded as she wandered out of the charmitorium and across the grounds, lost in thought.

It was hard to believe everything that had happened in such a short amount of time. She looked up at the stars and sighed.

Her feelings on everything were a jumble. Relief that she no longer had the headmaster glaring at her, excitement about her rapidly improving magic, sadness that her new friends were leaving.

And uncertainty. She had no idea what was going to happen next. It was a little scary, but also, she found she couldn't wait to turn to the next page.

Her wandering brought her into the school proper and she found herself passing the headmasters office. She hesitated at the door, something inside her compelling her to go in.

The door was unlocked, the room dark. A mirror stood in the middle of the room, the shimmer of a magical shield surrounded it.

Raven wasn't sure what she had hexpected to find or even what made her enter, but it wasn't this. She was familiar with this particular kind of mirror. A prison cell.

A mist shifted behind the glass as she came as close as she could to it. A shadow moved toward the surface and the mist cleared.

"Who's there?"

Raven stepped back, startled. "Headmaster?"

Milton Grimm came into focus just in time for her watch the startled look on his face melt into something between resignation and aggravation.

"It's you. Come to gloat, did you?" He said, crossing his arm defensively.

"No! No, I didn't even know you were here still. I don't know why I came here."

"Technically, I'm not there. I'm in a holding cell while I wait for my sentencing. Now if you have no reason to be here, get out!" His face turned slightly red and he turned away from her.

"It's not like I wanted this to happen. You brought this on yourself when you tried to poison me. Which, by the way, was very Evil Queen of you. Dexter was right, you acted the part of the villain rather well." Raven clenched her fists and stomped her foot, a crackle of magic snapped around her fingers.

"If you had just followed the script like you were suppose to I wouldn't have had to resort to such measures."

"That also sounds like something a villain would say."

"So I suppose you believe yourself to be the damsel then?"

"No, I don't. We are all protagonist of our own stories and I hope for the opportunity to play many roles, not just one." She sighed, finding it hard to order her thoughts. "I just wanted my story to be mine, not my mother's, not Apple's, not Snow White's. There are so many new stories that aren't being written because everyone keeps retelling the same, old ones.

"And now that I think about it, I guess I got that, didn't I. But I never made any of you play any particular part. You chose the role you played."

Grimm looked down, and his shoulders sagged. "New stories. I suppose it was inevitable. The old is always replaced with the new eventually."

Raven frowned. She had never said anything about replacements. "I don't want the old stories to be replaced. I just want to be able to add to what's already there." She tried smiling, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

She leaned against the desk, picking up a vase of wilting flowers. "I think our world is big enough to handle some more variety. Just because something new comes along, it doesn't mean we have to throw out the old."

She pulled a flower from her hair, Dexter had given it to her earlier that night when he picked her up for the party. She smiled and added it to the vase, waving her hand over the bunch of flowers, sending a rejuvenating burst of magic to the wilted ones in the process.

She held it out to the former headmaster to see. Her new rose stood out among the white daises, but still fit comfortably with the bunch.

Grimm's face went ashen and his eyes widened. "How? You shouldn't be able to do good magic. Not with the." He clamped his mouth shut in a hurry.

Raven looked at him suspiciously. It almost sounded like he knew about the curse that had been placed on her.

"Not with what?" She asked, placing the vase down and stepping in front of the mirror again.

"Nothing."

"It's not nothing. You were going to say something and I want to hear it." Raven stood ramrod straight and stared him down.

"You shouldn't be able to use good magic because of the Good Intentions curse I placed on you as a child. Happy now? Is that what you wanted to hear? That all along you were destined to defy your role? That you were born with good magic? That the only way to try to fix it was to curse you?"

"You cursed me? And here I was thinking it was my mother." Anger warred with relief. Her mother hadn't been the one to curse her. But the man in front of her had. "I can't believe you! How many other's have you done this too?"

"Only the one's I've had to in order to protect the stories!"

A sweep of magic rippled through the room, knocking over knickknacks and cracking the windows. It sizzled across the protection barrier around the mirror.

"They don't need you to protect them! They are the foundation of this world! No one is going to forget them! The old fairytales were told long before us and they'll be told long after both of us are gone. They've never needed protection. You've just been destroying the possibly of new ones. Goodbye, Milton Grimm."

Raven turned on her heel and stormed out of the office, slamming the door shut behind her.

EA

In another world, sitting at the bottom of a river, protected from the water by countless layers of ancient magic, the Storybook of Legends glowed brightly. A powerful magic ripped away the spell binding the book and for the first time in a long time it did what it was made to do.

The book burst open, pages flipping wildly as it slowly rose up from it wet tomb.

Just as suddenly as it started, the pages settled. The last page with writing resting down to reveal a blank page. And on that page words began to scroll across.

 _Once upon a time there lived a young princess. Her skin was pale as milk and her hair was as black as a raven's feather. But this girl was no ordinary child. She could do magic..._

The magic of the book sparkled and new magic pored from it's pages as it recorded the first new story in hundred's of years. Slowly, as the story unfolded, the book vanished from Wonderland and reappeared once more in the land of Ever After, it's proper home.

The place where stories are born.

And the world breathed again with new life.

EA

In another mirror, in another place, an evil woman smiled. Things may not have gone according to her plan, but the objective was achieved. Not by her, but by her beautiful, amazing daughter. She could be content in her prison knowing that.

EA

"I'll miss you guys," Raven said as she hugged Frankie goodbye.

"Hey, we're only a mirror away, right," Frankie said, squeezing Raven back and trying not to zap her with her bolts.

"Yeah, but it's not the same."

On the other side of the room, Cupid lamented that she hadn't gotten to spend as much time with everyone as she wished she had as she too said her goodbyes to her old friends.

Her monster friends had only just gotten there it seemed, and now they were leaving again.

Next to them Dexter and Jackson shared an awkward nod with each other. Both of them were just happy at the thought of not have people confusing them for each other anymore.

Not far from there, Apple stood before Cleo and Deuce, a gift basket of apples held out to them.

"I wanted to thank you both, for helping me understand. I wish you all the best of luck and good journey."

Deuce accepted the basket with a lazy salute.

"And I wish you luck on finding your own story. I'm sure that it'll be almost as good as mine," Cleo said. Apple teared up a little and then surprised Cleo with a sudden hug.

"I really mean it. It means a lot to me," Apple said once she had backed away.

"Well, you know, if you ever want to talk I'm sure I can arrange to get one of my many mirrors back home converted. When I do, I'll see about looking you up. It is nice to have another royal to talk to on occasion."

"I'd like that very much," Apple smiled at her new friend.

Giles Grimm cleared his throat. "I believe it is time," he said. He motioned everyone over to the travel mirror. On the other side Headmistress Bloodgood's gothic office stood out in sharp contrast to the bright, cheery world the Monsters were about to leave.

"Like they say," Clawdeen began with a smirk, "there's no place like home."

"I didn't realize how much I've missed Monster High until just now," Draculaura said, practically pressing her face to the smooth surface.

"Yes, well, if you'll just stand back. I'll open the portal," Headmaster Giles Grimm said.

"Not that I didn't like it here, I mean, aside from your brother kidnapping one of us and trying to poison Raven, I had a lot of fun." Draculaura gave him a strained laugh as she backed away.

"It's quite alright. I understand the sentiment," Giles assured her. A few swiped across the mirror's surface and he nodded that it was ready.

The girls and ghouls all gave each other one last hug, the guys all a wave or pat on the back. Then the group of Monsters stepped through the mirror.

The trip was bumpier than the first and they were all relieved when the mirror spat them out. Or they were until they looked up.

They had been expecting a dark office with cobweb decor, yes, but this was not the headmistress' office. The floor was hard, cold cement instead of dark purple carpeting. The cavernous room was empty safe for random bits of debris and garbage. Everything was damp and cold, with a heavy scent of mold and dirt.

There was no furniture save for a single, metal post with a big red button on it. The only light in the room came, not from a mirror, but the giant metal ring that dominated the wall behind them. It was from this that they entered this world and as the light shut off, casting them into complete darkness, they realized something had gone very wrong.

"Uh oh," Frankie said.

KC

(Ever After High, one minute prior)

From the space between spaces, a certain mischief maker smirked as she watched them all go. They had all been so busy with their last good byes that no one had noticed her slip out a hand an run it over the mirror's guidance controls.

"Yes, do have a safe trip home," Kitty purred. A trip to a random world would serve them right for using her like that. After all, one can't trick a trickster and not expect some kind of payback.

* * *

I know, I know. Apple will be a queen someday for a job. She and Deuce were discussing things for her to do to find her own story before that. And Kitty is just spiteful. Actually, Kitty is favorite character from Ever After High.

In the Spring Unsprung special, the characters make note that EA is all about magic, but it's magic seemed to be coming from Wonderland. That seemed odd to me, since Wonderland is it's own thing and there had to be a time the two were connected. Meaning EA has to be capable of producing its own magic at some point. I figured that's were the Storybook comes in, turning the energy of a new story into magic and its corruption/disappearance forced the word to leach off Wonderland's magic like a life support system.

And don't worry about the Monster's they'll find their way home eventually, but it might take awhile. There'll be three more stories in this series, but they'll be much shorter than OSotM or SEA and cross over with different series entirely.


End file.
